vâm
Definition
Noun (Archaic):
- Elephant: An extremely large, herbivorous mammal with a long trunk, large ears, and tusks. This is the direct, original meaning of "vâm," though it is now considered an archaic term.
Adjective (Figurative, in similes):
- Exceptionally strong or robust: Used almost exclusively in the fixed comparative simile "khỏe như vâm" (strong as an elephant). It describes a person, typically a man, possessing great physical strength or vitality.
Usage Examples
- Adjective (in simile):
- Anh công nhân đó khỏe như vâm, một mình bê vác cả thùng hàng nặng. (That worker is as strong as an ox, carrying the heavy crate by himself.)
- Cậu ấy tập thể hình nên giờ trông khỏe như vâm. (He's been bodybuilding so now he looks incredibly strong.)
Advanced Usage
- The word "vâm" is rarely, if ever, used in modern Vietnamese outside the idiom "khỏe như vâm." Its standalone use as a noun for "elephant" is obsolete.
Variants and Related Words
- Voi (n): The modern, standard Vietnamese word for "elephant."
- Đàn voi đang uống nước ở suối. (The herd of elephants is drinking water at the stream.)
Synonyms
- Strong (in the simile): powerful, sturdy, muscular, robust.
- Elephant (archaic): pachyderm (archaic/technical).
Related Idioms
- Khỏe như vâm: (as) strong as an ox; (as) strong as a horse. This is the primary and essentially only surviving usage of the word "vâm."
- Lực sĩ ấy khỏe như vâm, có thể nâng tạ rất nặng. (That athlete is as strong as an ox and can lift very heavy weights.)