Definition

1. Noun:

   • Mortar: A mixture used in construction, typically consisting of a binding agent (such as cement, lime, or gypsum), sand, and water, used for bonding bricks, stones, or for plastering surfaces.

2. Adjective:

   • Spoiled / Gone off / Watery: Describes a substance that has lost its proper, thick consistency and has become runny, separated, or decomposed, often due to age or spoilage. Commonly used for food items like porridge, eggs, or paste.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Thợ xây đang trộn vữa. (The mason is mixing mortar.)
  • Chúng tôi cần mua xi măng để làm vữa. (We need to buy cement to make mortar.)

• Adjective:

  • Cháo để lâu đã bị vữa. (The porridge left out for too long has gone watery.)
  • Trứng này vữa lòng rồi, không ăn được. (This egg is runny/spoiled; it's not edible.)

Advanced Usage

• "vữa trát": plastering mortar, used specifically for coating walls.

  • Loại vữa trát này có độ mịn cao. (This plastering mortar has a high fineness.)

• "vữa xi măng": cement mortar.

  • Công trình này sử dụng vữa xi măng nguyên chất. (This construction project uses pure cement mortar.)

Variants and Related Words

• Hồ vữa (n): This can refer to a paste or, in a spoiled state, a paste that has lost its consistency.

  • Hồ vữa này bị khô rồi. (This paste has dried out.)

• Trộn vữa (v): to mix mortar.

  • Anh ấy đang học cách trộn vữa đúng tỉ lệ. (He is learning how to mix mortar in the correct ratio.)

Synonyms

• Mortar: for the construction material (noun).
• Runny / Spoiled / Soggy: for the adjective describing a decomposed state.

Related Idioms

• Nát như tương vữa: Literally "mushed like spoiled paste," meaning something is completely ruined, messy, or has fallen apart.

  • Sau trận mưa, con đường nát như tương vữa. (After the rain, the road was a complete muddy mess.)

• Lòng vữa: A descriptive phrase for a runny egg yolk.

  • Tôi thích trứng ốp la lòng vữa. (I like sunny-side-up eggs with a runny yolk.)

noun

1. mortar