túng bấn
Definition
- Adjective:
- Financially strapped / in dire straits: The primary meaning describes a state of severe financial hardship, lacking the necessary money for basic needs and living expenses.
- Penniless / destitute: It indicates a condition of extreme poverty where one has little to no money.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Gia đình anh ấy đang rất túng bấn. (His family is in dire financial straits.)
- Sau trận dịch, nhiều người rơi vào cảnh túng bấn. (After the epidemic, many people fell into destitution.)
- Thời gian túng bấn khiến họ phải tiết kiệm từng đồng. (The period of financial hardship forced them to save every penny.)
Advanced Usage
- The word often carries a connotation of a prolonged, pressing, and difficult situation, not just a temporary shortage. It implies a struggle to make ends meet.
Variants and Related Words
Túng quẫn (adj): distressed, in a tight corner (often financial, but can extend to other difficult situations).
- Công ty đang trong tình thế túng quẫn. (The company is in a distressed situation.)
Khó khăn (adj): difficult, hard (a broader term for hardship, which can include financial difficulty).
- Họ gặp khó khăn về tài chính. (They are facing financial difficulties.)
Synonyms
- Impoverished: reduced to poverty.
- Needy: lacking the necessities of life; very poor.
- Hard up: having very little money.
Related Idioms
Túng bấn đến mức: so destitute that...
- Họ túng bấn đến mức phải bán đi căn nhà. (They were so destitute they had to sell their house.)
Cảnh túng bấn: a state of destitution.
- Cảnh túng bấn kéo dài nhiều năm. (The state of destitution lasted for many years.)