Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Sad, dejected, or shriveled: Describes a state of being very sad, downcast, or physically withered and shrunken, often due to illness, hunger, or melancholy. It conveys a sense of being curled in on oneself, both physically and emotionally.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Anh ấy trông buồn xo sau khi nghe tin. (He looks very sad after hearing the news.)
  • Con mèo ốm xo nằm co ro trong góc. (The sickly and shriveled cat lay curled up in the corner.)
  • Sau trận ốm, nó gầy xo đi trông thấy. (After the illness, he became visibly thin and withered.)

Advanced Usage

• "ngồi xo một xó": to sit curled up/dejected in a corner.
  • Cậu bé ngồi xo một xó vì bị mắng. (The boy sat dejected in a corner after being scolded.)

Variants and Related Words

• Buồn xo (compound adjective): very sad, deeply dejected.
  • Khuôn mặt buồn xo. (A very sad face.)
• Ốm xo (compound adjective): sickly and emaciated, looking withered from illness.
  • Dáng người ốm xo. (A sickly and shriveled physique.)
• Đói xo (compound adjective): looking gaunt and shriveled from hunger.
  • Nhìn đói xo. (To look famished and gaunt.)

Synonyms

• Ủ rũ: downcast, listless.
• Teo tóp: shriveled, withered.
• Rũ rượi: drooping, looking utterly dejected.

Notes on Usage

• The word "xo" is primarily used as a descriptive adjective and is almost always found in compound forms like "buồn xo", "ốm xo", or "đói xo" to intensify the described state.
• It carries a vivid, somewhat colloquial imagery of physical contraction or emotional withdrawal.

adj

1. (buồn xo) very sad