đắt tiền
Definition
- Adjective:
- Expensive, costly: Refers to something that has a high price or requires a large amount of money to purchase.
- Valuable, precious: Can imply that something, while costly, is also of high quality or great worth.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Chiếc xe này rất đắt tiền. (This car is very expensive.)
- Cô ấy mua một chiếc túi đắt tiền. (She bought an expensive bag.)
- Đó là một bài học đắt tiền. (That was a costly lesson.)
Advanced Usage
- Used figuratively to describe something acquired at a high cost, not necessarily monetary (e.g., time, effort, sacrifice).
- Chiến thắng này thật đắt tiền. (This victory was dearly won.)
Variants and Related Words
Đắt đỏ (adj): expensive, high-priced (often emphasizes the exorbitant cost).
- Cuộc sống ở thành phố này quá đắt đỏ. (Life in this city is too expensive.)
Đắt giá (adj): valuable, precious; can mean costly but often emphasizes high worth or esteem.
- Một nghệ sĩ đắt giá. (A highly-valued artist.)
Synonyms
- Expensive: commanding a high price.
- Costly: involving great expense or loss.
- Pricey: informal term for expensive.
Related Idioms
Đắt như tôm tươi: as expensive as fresh shrimp (a simile meaning very expensive).
- Mặt hàng này ở đây đắt như tôm tươi. (This item here is as expensive as fresh shrimp.)
Tiền nào của nấy: you get what you pay for (implies expensive things are of good quality).
- Đồ đắt tiền thường bền: đúng là tiền nào của nấy. (Expensive goods are often durable: you get what you pay for.)