trái chứng
Definition
- Adjective:
- Perverse / Contrary: Describes a person, often an older adult, who exhibits a difficult, irritable, or stubborn temperament that is seen as a change from their previous character.
- Eccentric / Unpredictable: Refers to someone who displays words or actions that are abnormal, unreasonable, or capricious.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Ông ấy già đi và trở nên trái chứng. (He has grown old and become contrary.)
- Đừng nghe bà ấy, bà ấy hay trái chứng lắm. (Don't listen to her; she is very unpredictable.)
- Tính nó hơi trái chứng, lúc thế này lúc thế khác. (His temper is a bit perverse, one way one moment and different the next.)
Advanced Usage
- The term often implies a negative change in disposition, particularly associated with aging, suggesting someone has become "hard to please" or "crotchety."
Variants and Related Words
- Trái tính trái nết (adj): An extended, more emphatic phrase meaning "ill-tempered" or "having a contrary and disagreeable nature."
- Bà cụ ngày càng trái tính trái nết. (The old lady is becoming more and more ill-tempered.)
Synonyms
- Contrary: Opposite in nature or direction.
- Perverse: Willfully determined to go against what is expected or reasonable.
- Crotchety: Irritable and eccentric, often due to old age.
- Capricious: Given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior.
Related Idioms
- While "trái chứng" itself is often used descriptively, it is conceptually related to the idiom "già thì trái chứng" which means "old age brings a contrary nature."
- Dân gian có câu "già thì trái chứng" quả không sai. (The folk saying "old age brings a contrary nature" is indeed correct.)