Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Cunning / Sly: Possessing or showing skill in achieving one's ends through deceit or evasion. It describes a clever but often dishonest or manipulative intelligence.
   • Mischievous / Roguish: Suggesting a playful, clever, and slightly naughty nature, often without serious malice.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Đứa trẻ đó rất tinh ma, luôn tìm cách lấy được đồ chơi của bạn. (That child is very cunning, always finding a way to get his friend's toy.)
  • Nó có ánh mắt tinh ma, biết rõ mình đang làm gì. (He has a mischievous glint in his eye, knowing exactly what he's doing.)
  • Con cáo tinh ma đã lừa được con quạ. (The sly fox tricked the crow.)

Advanced Usage

• The word often carries a dual nuance, blending sharp intelligence with a lack of scruples. It can be used to describe animals (like a fox) or people, particularly children, who are clever in a tricky way.
• It can imply a level of street-smart awareness and the ability to manipulate situations for personal benefit.

Variants and Related Words

• Tinh ranh (adj): Sharp, shrewd, astute. Often used similarly but may have a slightly less negative connotation than .
  • Cô bé rất tinh ranh trong việc kinh doanh nhỏ. (The little girl is very shrewd in her small business.)
• Ma mãnh (adj): Cunning, crafty. A close synonym emphasizing deceitful cleverness.

Synonyms

• Cunning: Skilled in deception.
• Sly: Clever at deceiving people in a secretive way.
• Mischievous: Playfully causing minor trouble.
• Shrewd: Having sharp powers of judgment, often in practical matters.
• Crafty: Skilled at using underhanded tactics.

Related Idioms

• Tinh ma quỷ quái: Extremely cunning and wicked. Emphasizes a devilish level of slyness and trickery.
  • Tên trộm tinh ma quỷ quái luôn thoát khỏi cảnh sát. (The extremely cunning thief always escapes the police.)
• Khôn vặt, tinh ma: A phrase describing someone who is clever only in small, trivial, or deceitful ways, lacking in broader wisdom.
  • Nó chỉ được cái khôn vặt, tinh ma chứ không thật sự thông minh. (He's only clever in petty, sly ways, not truly intelligent.)