tác oai tác quái
Working havoc and playing the tyrant — riding roughshod exactly as one pleases.
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All languages English Tiếng Việt
tách trà và đĩa lót
cup and saucer
tái ông thất mã, nan tri họa phước
The old frontiersman lost his horse — who can say what is disaster, what blessing; every loss may be luck in harness.
tán hươu tán vượn
to chat idly; to shoot the breeze
táng tận lương tâm
to be cruel; to have no conscience
táng đởm kinh hồn
Gall-shattered and soul-stunned — terrified to the marrow.
tâm bất tại
The mind not at home — attention wandered off; instruction poured past its absent tenant.
tâm cam tình nguyện
Sweet-hearted and fully willing — consent without a grain of reluctance.
tâm phục khẩu phục
to be sincerely convinced; to be won over completely
tâm thần bất định
Heart and spirit unsettled — attention scattered past collecting.
tâm trung hữu quỷ
A demon in the heart — the guilty conscience that flinches before anyone accuses.
tâm trung hữu số
The tally already in the heart — knowing the answer before a word is said.
tâm động quỉ thần tri
A stirred heart, and the spirits already know — intention registers upstairs before the deed.
tây phương cực lạc
The Western Pure Land — the blissful realm beyond death; to have gone there is to have died.
té ngửa
To fall over backwards — figuratively floored by a reveal, usually one that rewrites what you thought you knew.
tên rơi đạn lạc
Falling arrows and stray bullets — war's random harms landing on the innocent.
tình ngay lí gian
when one's actions or results are objectively detrimental despite good intention
tình như giấc mộng tan
Love like a dream dissolving — the parting of lovers, fading as one wakes.
tía má ơi
Holy Mother of God!; Mother of mercy!; literally "Father and Mother!"
tích cốc phòng cơ
Store grain against hunger — foresight measured in full jars.
tích kim dĩ gi tử tôn, tử tôn vị tất năng thủ, bất như tích âm đức ư minh minh chi trung, dĩ vi tử tôn trường cữu chi kế
Gold hoarded for descendants they may not keep; hidden virtue is the only estate that compounds — bequeath conduct, not bullion.
tích thiểu thành đa
Little by little becomes much — accumulation's patient arithmetic.
tích thiện phùng thiện, tích ác phùng ác
Bank goodness, meet goodness; bank evil, meet evil — the account always pays out in kind.
tím ruột bầm gan
Bruised gut and battered liver — smoldering with suppressed fury.
tín giả năng nhập
The credulous get things sent to believe — trust is the door the swindle knocks at.
tính khoe của
The wealth-flaunting streak — an itch to display one's money that no pocket can contain.
tóc dài quần loe
Long hair and bell-bottoms — the disapproving label for 1970s street fashion and its wearers.
tóc mai sợi vắn sợi dài, lấy nhau chẳng đặng thương hoài ngàn năm
Temple-hair strands short and long — we could not marry, so I will love you a thousand years — the vow of the unwed.
tôi ... tuổi
I’m ... years old.
tôi bị bệnh
"I'm sick" — the plain way to report illness; "bị" again marks it as unwanted. Southern speech often says "bị bịnh".
tôi bị lạc
"I'm lost" — the passive-misfortune marker "bị" tells the listener this happened TO you; follow with the place you need.
tôi bị mất ví
"I lost my wallet" — the phrase you hope to never need; "bị mất" covers stolen and misplaced alike.
tôi bị thương
"I'm injured" — for accidents and emergencies; pair with "gọi cấp cứu" (call an ambulance) when it's serious.
tôi chưa làm gì sai
"I haven't done anything wrong" — calm, formal, and worth knowing verbatim before you ever need it.
tôi có ... con
I have ... children.
tôi có bạn đời
I have a partner.
tôi có gia đình rồi
I’m married.
tôi có một câu hỏi
I have a question
tôi cần một bác sĩ
The emergency essential: "I need a doctor" — blunt is correct here; add "gấp" (urgently) to raise the alarm.
tôi góa chồng
I’m a widow — said by a woman whose husband has died.
tôi góa vợ
I’m a widower — said by a man whose wife has died.
tôi khát
I’m thirsty — the everyday way to say you need a drink.
tôi không biết
I don't know.
tôi không biết nói tiếng Việt
The honest opener every learner needs day one: "I can't (really) speak Vietnamese" — usually softened with "cho lắm" (not very well) and instantly forgiven.
tôi không có con
I don’t have any children.
tôi không hiểu
I don’t understand.
tôi không ăn thịt bò
"I don't eat beef" — the polite dietary line; works for allergy, religion, or preference without explanation.
tôi không ăn thịt lợn
"I don't eat pork" — crucial in a pork-loving cuisine; Southern speech says "thịt heo" (same meaning, different pig word).
tôi là người Việt
I am Vietnamese
tôi là người ăn chay
"I'm vegetarian" — Vietnam understands "ăn chay" deeply (Buddhist tradition); say it and most kitchens can adapt anything.
tôi làm việc bán thời gian hoặc toàn thời gian
I work part-time or full-time.
tôi làm việc tự do
I freelance.
tôi làm việc ở
I work at...; I work for...
tôi làm việc ở nhà
I work from home.
tôi muốn thuê xe
"I want to rent a vehicle" — default reading is a motorbike; specify "xe máy" (bike) or "ô tô/xe hơi" (car) to be exact.
tôi nghỉ hưu rồi
I’m retired.
tôi sinh ra ở
I was born in...
tôi suy nghĩ, vậy nên tôi tồn tại
I think, therefore I am
tôi sống ở
I live in...
tôi thất nghiệp
I’m unemployed.
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