điêu
[ʔɗiəw˧˧]
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Sense 1
Meaning · English
(adjective) habitually dishonest; very inclined to lie
Register: formal
Where it’s used:
Used
Miền Bắc · Northern Vietnam
• Wiktionary labels this sense “Northern”
Examples
Người đâu mà điêu ngoa !You lie like you breathe, don't you?
Đừng có điêu ! Không đời nào mày làm nổi !Don't BS me! No way you could do it!
Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Sources & notes
Imported from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); community review pending. source ↗
Sense 2
Register: formal
Examples
卞𪧻蔑丐𥏋，特𠄩丐鵰。Then [he] shot an arrow and got two eagles.
Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Sense 3
Meaning · English
(noun) a giant eagle in Jin Yong's wuxia novels and their live action adaptations
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
chim đại bàng khổng lồ trong tiểu thuyết võ hiệp của Jin Yong
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Register: formal
Examples
Anh hùng xạ điêuThe Eagle-Shooting Heroes
Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Common questions
What does “điêu” mean?
(adjective) habitually dishonest; very inclined to lie
Is “điêu” formal or informal?
điêu is generally formal.