tăm tắp
Definition
- Adjective:
- Perfectly aligned, perfectly uniform: Describes a series of objects, movements, or formations that are arranged or executed with exact, straight, and even alignment, like the teeth of a comb or soldiers marching in perfect step.
- Extending very far in a straight, uninterrupted line: Describes something that stretches into the distance in a perfectly straight and seemingly endless manner, such as a long road or row of trees.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Những hàng cây được trồng thẳng tăm tắp. (The rows of trees were planted in perfectly straight lines.)
- Đội quân bước đi tăm tắp. (The troop marched in perfectly uniform steps.)
- Con đường chạy tăm tắp về phía chân trời. (The road ran in a dead-straight line toward the horizon.)
Advanced Usage
- Often used with adverbs like "thẳng" (straight) for emphasis: "thẳng tăm tắp".
- Nhìn thẳng tăm tắp về phía trước. (Look straight ahead without deviation.)
Variants and Related Words
- Tắp (adj): An older, rarely used standalone root meaning orderly or aligned, now almost exclusively found in the compound "tăm tắp".
Synonyms
- Perfectly straight
- Uniformly aligned
- In perfect order
- In a dead-straight line
Related Idioms
- Thẳng tăm tắp: An intensified phrase meaning perfectly straight, unwavering, and direct.
- Anh ấy trả lời thẳng tăm tắp, không quanh co. (He answered directly and unequivocally, without beating around the bush.)