Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Wasteful / In vain: Describes an action, effort, or resource that is expended without achieving the desired or useful result, leading to a sense of loss.
   • Regrettable / Pitiful: Expresses a feeling of pity, sorrow, or regret over something unfortunate that has happened or a wasted potential.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Công sức bỏ ra hoàn toàn uổng phí. (The effort put in was completely wasted.)
  • Thật là uổng khi tài năng của anh ấy không được trọng dụng. (It's truly a pity that his talent is not appreciated.)
  • Uổng quá, tôi đã bỏ lỡ buổi hòa nhạc. (What a shame, I missed the concert.)

Advanced Usage

• "uổng công": to waste one's effort, to labor in vain.

  • Nó không nghe đâu, nói chỉ uổng công thôi. (He won't listen, talking is just a waste of effort.)

• "uổng mạng" / "uổng tử": to die in vain, a meaningless death.

  • Người lính trẻ đã chết một cái chết thật uổng mạng. (The young soldier died a death that was truly in vain.)

Variants and Related Words

• Uổng phí (adj/phr): wasteful, squandered. Often used together for emphasis.
  • Đây là một sự uổng phí thời gian. (This is a waste of time.)

Synonyms

• Wasteful: using or expending something of value carelessly.
• In vain: without success or a result.
• Regrettable: giving rise to regret; undesirable.
• Pitiful: deserving or arousing pity.

Related Idioms

• Uổng lời: to waste one's words (to speak without being listened to).

  • Giải thích với nó chỉ uổng lời. (Explaining to him is just a waste of words.)

• Tiền uổng bạc hoài: money thrown away (money spent wastefully).

  • Mua cái máy hỏng đó đúng là tiền uổng bạc hoài. (Buying that broken machine was just money thrown away.)