tương
Definition
Noun:
- Sauce: A savory, often fermented condiment, typically made from soybeans, rice, or corn, used for dipping or as a seasoning in Vietnamese cuisine. It is analogous to soy sauce or bean paste.
- Paste: A thick, fermented preparation made from beans and grains.
Verb (colloquial):
- To stuff in / to cram in: To put or add something into a place haphazardly, carelessly, or in excess.
Usage Examples
Noun:
- Bánh đúc thường được ăn kèm với tương. (Rice cake is often eaten with fermented soybean sauce.)
- Mẹ tôi làm tương rất ngon. (My mother makes very delicious bean paste.)
Verb:
- Nó tương đủ thứ vào ba lô. (He stuffed all sorts of things into his backpack.)
- Đừng tương quá nhiều gia vị. (Don't cram in too much seasoning.)
Advanced Usage
- The noun "tương" is often part of compound words specifying the type of sauce or paste.
- "tương ớt": chili sauce.
- Tôi thích ăn phở với tương ớt. (I like to eat pho with chili sauce.)
- "tương cà": ketchup (tomato sauce).
- Khoai tây chiên chấm tương cà. (French fries dipped in ketchup.)
Variants and Related Words
- Tương bần (n): A specific type of fermented soybean paste from Bần Yên Nhân village.
- Tương đậu nành (n): Soybean paste.
- Tương ớt (n): Chili sauce, sriracha.
- Tương cà (n): Ketchup, tomato sauce.
Synonyms
- Noun: Sauce, paste, condiment, dip.
- Verb: To cram, to stuff, to shove, to throw in.
Related Idioms
- Biết gì tương cả vào: To put in everything one knows (often used in the context of writing or answering without discrimination).
- Nó không đọc đề kỹ, biết gì tương cả vào bài thi. (He didn't read the prompt carefully and crammed everything he knew into the exam paper.)