Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Shameless, brazen: Showing no sense of shame, embarrassment, or sensitivity to criticism or social judgment.
   • Inert, unresponsive: Resistant to change, external forces, or chemical reactions; immovable or unyielding.
   • Exposed, bare: Left in a state of being uncovered, stripped, or laid bare, often of natural coverings.
   • Isolated, left alone: Being in a state of solitary existence, left behind or remaining alone.
   • Socially awkward or conspicuous: Feeling or appearing awkwardly out of place or conspicuously different in a social setting.

Usage Examples

• Adjective (Shameless):
  • Anh ta bị phê bình nhưng mặt vẫn trơ ra. (He was criticized but remained brazen-faced.)
  • Thái độ trơ trẽn của hắn thật đáng khinh. (His shameless attitude is truly despicable.)
• Adjective (Inert/Unchanging):
  • Hòn đá vẫn trơ ra dù bị đập mạnh. (The stone remained inert despite being struck hard.)
  • Khí trơ như neon không dễ phản ứng. (Inert gases like neon do not react easily.)
• Adjective (Exposed):
  • Sau cơn bão, những cành cây trơ ra. (After the storm, the tree branches were left bare.)
  • Cánh đồng chỉ còn trơ gốc rạ. (The field was left with nothing but exposed rice stubble.)
• Adjective (Isolated):
  • Mọi người đi hết, chỉ trơ lại một mình tôi. (Everyone left, leaving me all alone.)
  • Căn phòng trơ trọi mấy chiếc ghế. (The room was left with just a few lonely chairs.)
• Adjective (Socially Awkward):
  • Một mình giữa đám đông, tôi cảm thấy rất trơ. (Alone in the crowd, I felt very awkward and out of place.)

Advanced Usage

• "trơ trơ": A reduplicated form emphasizing immutability, shamelessness, or impassivity.
  • Nó cứ trơ trơ ra như không nghe thấy gì. (He just sat there impassively as if he heard nothing.)
• "trơ như đá" / "trơ như mặt thớt": Idiomatic similes meaning "as hard/shameless as stone/a cutting board," emphasizing utter unresponsiveness or shamelessness.
  • Lời nói đó chẳng làm anh ấy động lòng, trơ như đá vậy. (Those words didn't move him; he was as hard as stone.)

Variants and Related Words

• Trơ trọi (adj): Lonely, isolated, and exposed; often describing something standing alone in a bare landscape.
  • Ngôi nhà trơ trọi trên đồi. (The house stood lonely on the hill.)
• Trơ trẽn (adj): Blatantly shameless, brazen (stronger negative connotation than "trơ").
  • Hành vi trơ trẽn đó không thể chấp nhận được. (That brazen behavior is unacceptable.)
• Trơ lì (adj): Obstinate, thick-skinned, stubbornly unresponsive.
  • Đứa trẻ trơ lì trước mọi lời răn dạy. (The child was obstinate to all admonitions.)

Synonyms

• Shameless: brazen, impudent, unabashed.
• Inert: unresponsive, immovable, passive, unreactive.
• Bare: exposed, naked, stripped.
• Isolated: alone, solitary, leftover.
• Awkward: conspicuous, out of place.

Related Idioms

• Trơ mắt ếch: To stare blankly or foolishly (like a frog's eyes); to be unable to do anything but watch helplessly.
  • Họ chỉ biết đứng trơ mắt ếch nhìn nhà cháy. (They could only stand and stare blankly as the house burned.)
• Ăn trơ ở đậu: To live a transient, unstable life with no permanent home.
  • Cả đời ông ấy sống kiểu ăn trơ ở đậu. (He lived a transient life his whole life.)

adj

1. shameless, brazen-faced inert