Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Numb with pain or sorrow: Describes a physical or emotional state of being so deeply affected by pain, cold, or grief that one feels a penetrating numbness or sharp, aching distress.
   • Wrenched / Heart-rending: Conveys a sense of profound emotional pain or pity that is deeply felt and distressing.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Nghe tin dữ, lòng cô ấy tê tái. (Hearing the bad news, her heart was wrenched with sorrow.)
  • Đôi tay anh ấy tê tái vì giá rét. (His hands were numb with the bitter cold.)
  • Câu chuyện thật tê tái. (The story is truly heart-rending.)

Advanced Usage

• Often used to describe a blended sensation of physical numbness and emotional anguish, particularly in literary or descriptive contexts.
• Can modify nouns related to the heart (), body parts (), or general feelings ().

Variants and Related Words

• Tê (adj): numb, tingling (primarily physical).
  • Chân tôi bị tê. (My leg is numb.)
• Buốt giá (adj): piercingly cold (emphasizes the physical cold).
  • Trời buốt giá. (The weather is piercingly cold.)

Synonyms

• Numb: deprived of feeling, especially from cold or shock.
• Heart-rending: causing overwhelming distress or sorrow.
• Wrenched: twisted with emotional pain.

Related Idioms

• Lòng tê tái: a transi heart; a heart gripped by piercing sorrow.
  • Lòng tê tái khi tiễn biệt. (A heart wrenched with sorrow when saying goodbye.)
• Tê tái cõi lòng: a deeply literary phrase meaning "the innermost soul is numb with grief."