xụ
Definition
- Adjective:
- Drooping or sagging (of facial features): Describes a facial expression that appears downcast, sullen, or elongated due to disappointment, sadness, or displeasure. It often refers to a "long face."
- Dejected or sullen: Characterizes a gloomy, dispirited, or sulky appearance, particularly in the countenance.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Nghe tin đó, mặt nó xụ ngay xuống. (Hearing that news, his/her face fell immediately.)
- Đứa bé xụ mặt vì không được mua đồ chơi. (The child pulled a long face because he wasn't bought a toy.)
- Anh ấy ngồi xụ mặt một mình trong góc. (He sat with a sullen face alone in the corner.)
Advanced Usage
- The word "xụ" is almost exclusively used in the compound "xụ mặt" or similar phrases describing facial expression. It is rarely used alone to modify other nouns.
- Cô ấy xụ mặt cả ngày hôm nay. (She has had a sullen face all day today.)
Variants and Related Words
Xụ mặt (adj phrase): to have a long face, to look sullen or dejected.
- Thua trận, cả đội xụ mặt ra về. (Losing the match, the whole team left with long faces.)
Xụ xuống (verb phrase): to droop or sag down (often for face or features).
- Hai vai anh ta xụ xuống vì mệt mỏi. (His shoulders sagged from exhaustion.)
Synonyms
- Sullen: bad-tempered and sulky; gloomy.
- Dejected: sad and depressed; dispirited.
- Downcast: (of eyes) looking downward; (of expression) sad or depressed.
- Morose: sullen and ill-tempered.
Related Idioms
- Mặt xụ như bị (Face as drooping as...): A simile emphasizing a very sad or disappointed facial expression.
- Nghe tin trượt đại học, mặt nó xụ như bị. (Hearing the news of failing the university exam, his face fell completely.)