bì bạch
Vietnamese
editEtymology
editAugmented from bạch (“with a thud”). Compare bì bịch, bì bõm, bì bọp.
Pronunciation
edit- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [ʔɓi˨˩ ʔɓajk̟̚˧˨ʔ]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [ʔɓɪj˦˩ ʔɓat̚˨˩ʔ]
- (Saigon) IPA(key): [ʔɓɪj˨˩ ʔɓat̚˨˩˨]
Adjective
editbì bạch
- (onomatopoeia) with a smacking or flapping sound
Usage notes
editA pun associates this native word with the homophonic Sino-Vietnamese word of 皮白 (bì bạch, literally “skin + white”), leading to the expression:
- da trắng vỗ bì bạch (literally “white skin slapped like bì bạch [white-skin]”),
often paired with similar-structured expressions such as:
- rừng sâu mưa lâm thâm (literally “deep forest rains like lâm thâm [deep-forest]”),
- trời xanh màu thanh thiên (literally “blue sky like thanh thiên [blue-sky]”)
to form an antithetical couplet. Compare cô miên.