bượp

Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 乏 (SV: phạp).

Regarding the second meaning below, this seems to be a rare case of semantic reversal.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɨəp̚˧˨ʔ]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɨəp̚˨˩ʔ]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɨəp̚˨˩˨]

Adjective

bượp

1. (obsolete) few, pauce, insufficient

   Synonyms: thiếu, ít

2. (rare) profitable, cheap and plentiful