xớ rớ
Definition
Verb:
- To loiter, to hang around aimlessly: To move or stand about a place without a clear purpose, often in a way that appears suspicious or idle.
- To meddle, to poke one's nose into: To interfere or involve oneself in matters that are not one's concern.
Adjective:
- Meddlesome, interfering: Describing a person who habitually involves themselves in other people's business.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Nó cứ xớ rớ ở cổng trường suốt buổi chiều. (He just loitered at the school gate all afternoon.)
- Đừng có xớ rớ vào chuyện của người khác. (Don't meddle in other people's business.)
- Adjective:
- Tính nó rất xớ rớ, cái gì cũng muốn biết. (He is very meddlesome; he wants to know everything.)
Advanced Usage
- The word often carries a negative connotation, implying that the action is annoying, pointless, or causes suspicion.
- It can describe physical loitering in a location or metaphorical interference in affairs.
Variants and Related Words
- Lảng vảng (v): to linger, to hang around. This is a close synonym for the "loitering" sense but may lack the strong connotation of meddling.
- Mấy người lạ lảng vảng quanh đây. (Some strangers are lingering around here.)
Synonyms
- To loiter: To stand or wait around without purpose.
- To meddle: To interfere in something that is not one's concern.
- To prowl: To move around restlessly or stealthily, often with suspicion.
Related Idioms
- Xớ rớ đầu này, xớ rớ đầu kia: To be meddlesome everywhere, to poke one's nose into everything.
- Bà ấy lúc nào cũng xớ rớ đầu này, xớ rớ đầu kia trong xóm. (She's always poking her nose into everything in the neighborhood.)