thủ

[tʰu˧˩]

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Sense 1

Meaning · English

(verb) to guard; to keep

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

bảo vệ; giữ gìn

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Register: informal

Sources & notes

Imported from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-29); community review pending. source ↗

Sense 2

Meaning · English

(verb) to keep (something not yours as your own)

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

giữ lại thứ không phải của mình

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Register: informal

Examples

Tao cho nó mượn rồi nó thủ luôn.I lent it to him and now he just keeps it.

Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sense 3

Meaning · English

(noun) a head

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

một đầu

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Register: informal

Where it’s used: Used Miền Bắc · Northern Vietnam • Wiktionary labels this sense “Northern”

Examples

thủ lợnpig head

Wiktionary example (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Common questions

What does “thủ” mean?

(verb) to guard; to keep

Is “thủ” formal or informal?

thủ is generally informal.