Definition

1. Noun:

   • Opium pipe: A long, narrow pipe traditionally used for smoking opium, consisting of a small bowl and a long stem.
   • Tobacco pipe: A pipe used for smoking tobacco, typically with a bowl and a stem.

2. Verb (colloquial):

   • To flee, to run away: To escape quickly from a place, especially to avoid danger or trouble.
   • To hide, to spirit away: To quickly move and conceal something (often stolen goods or evidence) in another location.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Ông cụ ngồi hút thuốc bằng cái tẩu gỗ. (The old man sat smoking with a wooden pipe.)
  • Bảo tàng trưng bày một chiếc tẩu thuốc phiện cổ. (The museum displays an antique opium pipe.)

• Verb:

  • Khi cảnh sát đến, bọn trộm đã tẩu mất. (When the police arrived, the thieves had already fled.)
  • Tên gian đã kịp tẩu tang vật trước khi bị bắt. (The crook managed to hide the evidence before being caught.)

Advanced Usage

• "Tẩu thoát": To escape successfully, to make a getaway.

  • Tên cướp đã tẩu thoát bằng đường sông. (The robber escaped via the river.)

• "Tẩu tang": To dispose of or hide evidence (especially stolen goods).

  • Hắn loay hoay tìm cách tẩu tang. (He was fumbling to find a way to hide the evidence.)

Variants and Related Words

• Ống tẩu (n): Another term for a smoking pipe.

  • Anh ấy sưu tập các loại ống tẩu. (He collects different types of pipes.)

• Tẩu hỏa nhập ma (idiom, literal: "to flee fire and enter the ghost"): To panic and act irrationally, often making a situation worse.

  • Nghe tin dữ, anh ta tẩu hỏa nhập ma, chẳng biết làm gì. (Upon hearing the bad news, he panicked and didn't know what to do.)

Synonyms

• Noun: Pipe, opium pipe.
• Verb: To flee, to escape, to run off, to abscond, to hide, to conceal.

Related Idioms

• Tẩu vi thượng sách (from Chinese: 走為上策): The best strategy is to run away; discretion is the better part of valour.
  • Đánh không lại, tẩu vi thượng sách vậy. (If we can't win the fight, the best plan is to run.)

noun

1. opium pipe tobacco pipe

verb

1. to flee, to run away to hide