ế mình
Definition
- Adjective (dialectal):
- To be sick / to be ill: The primary meaning of "ế mình" is to describe a state of physical illness or poor health. It is a colloquial and regional expression.
- To feel unwell / to be under the weather: It can also describe a general feeling of bodily discomfort or malaise, not necessarily a serious sickness.
Usage Examples
- Adjective:
- Dạo này trời lạnh, tôi thấy ế mình quá. (Lately, the weather is cold, I feel very unwell.)
- Nó ế mình nên không đi học được. (He is sick, so he cannot go to school.)
Advanced Usage
- This term is marked as dialectal ("đph"). Its use is more common in certain regional speech patterns rather than in standard, formal Vietnamese.
Variants and Related Words
Ốm (adj): sick, ill. This is the standard, more common word for being sick.
- Cô ấy bị ốm. (She is sick.)
Mệt mỏi (adj): tired, fatigued. This describes a state of tiredness which can be related to feeling unwell.
- Tôi cảm thấy rất mệt mỏi. (I feel very tired.)
Synonyms
- Sick: affected by physical illness.
- Ill: not in good health.
- Unwell: not feeling physically healthy.
Notes on Usage
- "Ế mình" is an informal, dialectal term. For clear communication in most contexts, especially written or formal ones, the standard word "ốm" is strongly preferred.
- The phrase directly describes the state of one's own body ("mình" means oneself/body).