tép diu

Một người đánh cá đang vớt tép diu từ dưới nước.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A type of small shrimp: "Tép diu" primarily refers to a very small variety of freshwater shrimp or prawn, often used in Vietnamese cuisine.
   • A person of lowly status (colloquial, figurative): In a figurative and somewhat vulgar context, it can be used to refer to an insignificant person, someone with a low social position or little influence.

Usage Examples

• Noun (literal):
  • Mẹ tôi mua tép diu về làm mắm. (My mother bought small shrimp to make fermented paste.)
  • Canh chua nấu với tép diu rất ngon. (Sour soup cooked with small shrimp is very delicious.)
• Noun (figurative):
  • Hắn ta chỉ là một thằng tép diu trong công ty đó thôi. (He's just a nobody in that company.)

Advanced Usage

• The figurative usage is considered informal and can be derogatory, implying contempt or belittlement towards the person being described.

Variants and Related Words

• Tép (n): A general term for small shrimp or prawn. "Tép diu" specifies a particularly small kind.
• Tép mồng (n): Another variety of small shrimp.
• Con tép (n): Can be used similarly to the figurative sense of "tép diu" to mean an insignificant person.

Synonyms

• Small shrimp / tiny prawn (for the literal meaning).
• Nobody / nonentity / small fry / underling (for the figurative meaning).

Related Idioms

• Như tép diu gặp phải lưới giăng: Like small shrimp encountering a spread net; used to describe a situation where someone small or weak is easily caught or overwhelmed by a larger force or system.