vỏ chuối
Definition
Noun:
- Banana peel / banana skin: The outer, typically yellow or green, protective layer of a banana fruit, which is removed before eating the soft inner part.
Noun (figurative):
- A cause of a slip or failure: Used metaphorically to refer to an unexpected, often trivial, problem or oversight that causes someone to fail, slip up, or be embarrassed, analogous to the comic trope of slipping on a banana peel.
Usage Examples
Noun (literal):
- Đừng vứt vỏ chuối trên đường. (Don't throw banana peels on the road.)
- Cô ấy bóc vỏ chuối rất cẩn thận. (She peels the banana skin very carefully.)
Noun (figurative):
- Dự án thất bại vì một "vỏ chuối" rất nhỏ. (The project failed because of a very small "banana skin".)
- Anh ấy vấp phải vỏ chuối trong bài phát biểu. (He slipped on a banana peel during his speech.)
Advanced Usage
- "Trượt vỏ chuối" (idiomatic verb phrase): Literally "to slip on a banana peel". It colloquially means to fail an exam or a test.
- Nó lo sợ sẽ trượt vỏ chuối trong kỳ thi sắp tới. (He is afraid he will "slip on a banana peel" in the upcoming exam.)
Variants and Related Words
- Vỏ (n): peel, skin, shell, husk (a general term for the outer covering of fruits, nuts, or objects).
- Chuối (n): banana (the fruit).
Synonyms
- Banana peel / banana skin: The literal outer covering.
- Slipping hazard: For the literal cause of a fall.
- Pitfall / snafu: For the metaphorical cause of an unexpected failure.
Related Idioms
- Trượt vỏ chuối: To fail, especially in an exam or test (as above).
- Giẫm phải vỏ chuối: To step on a banana peel; to encounter an unexpected minor problem that leads to trouble.