âm binh

Vietnamese

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 陰 (“the nether”) and 兵 (“soldier”), literally "soldier from the underworld".

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔəm˧˧ ʔɓïŋ˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔəm˧˧ ʔɓɨn˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔəm˧˧ ʔɓɨn˧˧]

Adjective

âm binh

1. (colloquial) incompetent; unreliable

   Thằng âm binh này.

   Jeez, you incompetent dumbass.

2. (colloquial) goddamn; godforsaken

   Người ta đi qua thôi mà có con chó âm binh nào sủa điếc hết cả tai.

   I was just passing by but some godforsaken dog just kept barking at me, now my ears are still ringing.