tần mần
Definition
Adverb:
- Slowly and meticulously: Describes an action performed with excessive slowness and an extreme, often unnecessary, attention to minor details. It implies a tedious, time-consuming process.
Adjective:
- Slow and fussy / overly meticulous: Characterizes a person or their behavior as being painstakingly slow and overly concerned with trivial details.
Usage Examples
Adverb:
- Anh ấy tần mần tính toán cả buổi sáng. (He spent the whole morning calculating slowly and meticulously.)
- Đừng tần mần với mấy việc lặt vặt ấy nữa. (Don't fuss over those trivial tasks so slowly anymore.)
Adjective:
- Tính nó rất tần mần. (His/her character is very slow and fussy.)
- Công việc đòi hỏi sự tỉ mỉ, chứ không phải sự tần mần. (The job requires carefulness, not fussy slowness.)
Advanced Usage
- The word often carries a negative connotation, criticizing the inefficiency or unnecessary deliberateness of an action. It suggests the person is wasting time on minutiae.
Variants and Related Words
- Tỉ mỉ (adj): meticulous, careful, thorough (generally positive or neutral).
- Cầu kỳ (adj): elaborate, ornate, fussy (often about style or preparation).
Synonyms
- Slowly and painstakingly
- Fussily
- In a nitpicking manner
Related Idioms
- While "tần mần" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, it is used in descriptive phrases to criticize slow, inefficient work.
- Làm việc tần mần cả ngày chẳng xong. (Working fussily all day without finishing anything.)