Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Extremely thin or emaciated: Describes a person or animal who is excessively gaunt, skinny, or withered, often to a point that suggests poor health or severe undernourishment. It implies a more severe state than simply "gầy" (thin).

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau trận ốm nặng, nó trông gầy tọp. (After the serious illness, he looks extremely emaciated.)
  • Con chó bị bỏ rơi trông thật gầy tọp. (The abandoned dog looks terribly gaunt.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "tọp" is almost exclusively used in combination with "gầy" to form the compound "gầy tọp". It is very rarely, if ever, used as a standalone adjective in modern Vietnamese.

Variants and Related Words

• Gầy tọp (adj): The standard and primary form, meaning extremely thin, emaciated.
  • Bà cụ ốm yếu và gầy tọp. (The old woman is sickly and emaciated.)

Synonyms

• Emaciated: Abnormally thin or weak, especially because of illness or a lack of food.
• Gaunt: (Of a person) lean and haggard, especially because of suffering, hunger, or age.
• Skinny: (Informal) very thin.
• Withered: Shriveled or wrinkled from age or disease.

Notes on Usage

• "Tọp" is a descriptive complement that intensifies the adjective "gầy". Its usage is colloquial and vivid.
• It typically carries a negative connotation, describing an undesirable and often pitiable state of extreme thinness.