thím
- Noun:
- Aunt (specific): Refers specifically to the wife of one's father's younger brother (chú). This is a kinship term used within the Vietnamese family structure.
- Aunt (general/colloquial): Can be used as a polite, familiar, or affectionate term of address for a middle-aged woman who is not a blood relative, similar to "auntie."
Noun (Kinship):
- Chủ nhật này con sẽ về quê thăm thím. (This Sunday, I will go back to my hometown to visit my aunt [wife of my father's younger brother].)
- Thím của tôi là giáo viên. (My aunt [wife of my father's younger brother] is a teacher.)
Noun (General address):
- Cháu chào thím ạ! (Hello, auntie! [said by a child to an older woman])
- Thím bán cho tôi một ký cam. (Auntie, please sell me one kilogram of oranges.)
Self-reference by a woman: In some traditional contexts, a woman might refer to herself as "thím" when speaking to the children of her husband's older brother, as a humble and polite form of "I" or "me."
- Thím sẽ mua quà cho các cháu. ([I] Auntie will buy gifts for you [children].)
Third-person reference: Used to refer to the wife of one's father's younger brother when speaking to others.
- Thím đang nấu cơm trong bếp. ([My] aunt is cooking in the kitchen.)
- Chú: Noun. Father's younger brother; the husband in the "chú-thím" pair.
- Cô: Noun. Father's sister; a more general term for a younger aunt or a polite term for a young woman.
- Dì: Noun. Mother's sister.
- Bác: Noun. Father's/mother's older sibling or their spouse; also a polite term for an older person.
- Mợ: Noun. (Northern dialect) Wife of mother's brother (cậu).
- Dì: Aunt (specifically mother's sister). While "dì" is a blood relative, "thím" is an aunt by marriage. They are not interchangeable in terms of precise family relation but can both be used as general polite terms for "auntie."
- Cô: Aunt (father's sister) or Miss. Used for a younger aunt or as a polite address.
Chú thím: A compound term referring to the uncle (chú) and aunt (thím) as a couple.
- Cuối tuần gia đình tôi sẽ đi thăm chú thím. (This weekend my family will visit my uncle and aunt [the couple].)
Kính thưa các bác, các chú, các cô, các thím, các anh, các chị...: A formal and respectful opening address used in speeches or letters to greet a mixed audience, listing various kinship/polite titles. "Các thím" here respectfully addresses the married women of the father's younger brother generation or similar status.