áp út
Definition
- Adjective:
- Penultimate; second to last: Refers to the position immediately before the last one in a sequence, order, or ranking. It is most commonly used within the context of family birth order to describe the child born just before the youngest.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Trong gia đình năm anh em, tôi là con áp út. (In a family of five siblings, I am the second-to-last child.)
- Anh trai áp út của tôi là một kiến trúc sư. (My penultimate older brother is an architect.)
- Đây là chương áp út của cuốn sách. (This is the penultimate chapter of the book.)
Advanced Usage
- The term can be applied to any ordered series, not just siblings, though the familial context is its most frequent and natural usage.
- Đội của chúng tôi về đích ở vị trí áp út trong cuộc đua. (Our team finished in the penultimate position in the race.)
Variants and Related Words
- Út (adj): Youngest, last. Often used together with "áp út" to clarify the sequence.
- Em út (the youngest sibling).
Synonyms
- Second-to-last: The one before the final one.
- Penultimate: (Formal) Last but one in a series.
Notes on Usage
- "Áp út" is a compound word formed from "áp" (to be close to, to press against) and "út" (the youngest/last). It literally means "next to the youngest."
- It is primarily used as an adjective and is not typically used as a noun on its own (e.g., you say "con áp út," not just "một áp út").
- This term is specific to describing order and does not imply any specific age gap or other characteristics.