Definition

Adjective: - Oval, oval-shaped: Describes a shape that is elongated and rounded, similar to an egg or an ellipse. This term is most commonly used to describe the shape of a human face.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Cô ấy có khuôn mặt trái xoan. (She has an oval face.)
  • Kiểu tóc này phù hợp với những người mặt trái xoan. (This hairstyle suits people with oval faces.)
  • Trong hội họa, khuôn mặt trái xoan thường được coi là chuẩn mực. (In painting, the oval face is often considered the standard.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "trái xoan" is almost exclusively used to describe facial shape. It is a poetic and complimentary descriptor in Vietnamese.
• It can be used metaphorically to describe other objects with a similar elegant, elongated oval shape, though this is less common.
  • Chiếc lá có hình trái xoan. (The leaf has an oval shape.)

Variants and Related Words

• Hình bầu dục / Hình oval (Noun): Oval shape. This is the general geometric term.
  • Vẽ một hình bầu dục trên giấy. (Draw an oval on the paper.)
• Xoan (Noun): Refers to the tree (Chinaberry tree), whose fruit is oval. The term "trái xoan" literally means "the fruit of the xoan tree," which is the origin of this descriptive adjective.

Synonyms

• Hình bầu dục: Oval-shaped.
• Hình oval: Oval.
• Thuôn dài: Elongated (can describe shape but is more general).

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Khuôn mặt trái xoan: An oval face. This is the standard and most frequent collocation.
  • Ước mơ của nhiều người là sở hữu một khuôn mặt trái xoan. (The dream of many people is to have an oval face.)

adj

1. oval