tanh tanh
Definition
- Adjective:
- Slightly fishy or slightly metallic: Describes a very mild, often initial, smell or taste reminiscent of fish or blood. It is weaker than the full adjective "tanh" (fishy/metallic).
- Slightly unpleasant (odor/taste): Indicates a faint, typically organic, unpleasantness in smell or flavor, often associated with seafood, certain metals, or stagnant water.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Nước ở cái giếng cũ này có mùi tanh tanh. (The water from this old well has a slightly metallic smell.)
- Cá này mới đánh bắt nhưng vẫn còn tanh tanh một chút. (This fish is freshly caught but still has a slight fishy taste.)
- Không khí sau cơn mưa đôi khi tanh tanh mùi đất. (The air after the rain sometimes has a faint, earthy unpleasantness.)
Advanced Usage
- Used to soften the description, making it less strong or blunt than using "tanh" alone. It often implies the smell/taste is detectable but not overpowering.
- Can be used metaphorically in literature to describe an atmosphere or memory that carries a faint, unpleasant quality.
Variants and Related Words
- Tanh (adj): Strongly fishy or metallic; the root adjective.
- Mùi tanh của máu. (The metallic smell of blood.)
Synonyms
- Faintly fishy: Having a slight smell of fish.
- Slightly metallic: Having a slight taste or smell like metal.
- A bit off-putting (in smell/taste): Mildly unpleasant to the senses.
Related Idioms
- While "tanh tanh" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it follows the common Vietnamese reduplicative pattern (lặp từ) to express a diminished degree of the root adjective's quality.