Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Haggard; gaunt; drawn: Describes a face or appearance that looks tired, thin, and worn out, often due to illness, exhaustion, worry, or lack of sleep. It emphasizes a loss of healthy fullness and vitality.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau trận ốm dài, khuôn mặt anh ấy trông thật võ vạc. (After the long illness, his face looked very haggard.)
  • Những đêm thức trắng lo lắng khiến cô có vẻ ngoài võ vạc. (Sleepless nights of worry gave her a gaunt appearance.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "võ vạc" is primarily literary and descriptive. It is often used to evoke a strong visual image of physical decline or profound fatigue, more intense than simply "mệt mỏi" (tired).

Variants and Related Words

• Tiều tụy (adj): haggard, worn-out, often from suffering or hardship. It is a close synonym with a similar emotional weight.
• Hốc hác (adj): hollow-cheeked, gaunt. It focuses more on the sunken physical features.
• Xanh xao (adj): pale, pallid. Often used alongside "võ vạc" or "hốc hác" to describe a sickly appearance.

Synonyms

• Haggard: Having a worn, exhausted appearance.
• Gaunt: Extremely thin and bony, often from hunger or illness.
• Drawn: (Of a face) looking tense and tired.
• Emaciated: Abnormally thin or weak, especially from illness or hunger (a stronger, more clinical term).

Related Idioms

• While "võ vạc" itself is not commonly part of a fixed idiom, it is frequently used in descriptive phrases contrasting a person's current state with their former health.
  • Một thân hình cường tráng giờ đã tiều tụy, võ vạc. (A once strong and robust body is now haggard and gaunt.)