See also: keu and ke'u

Middle Vietnamese

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Etymology

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From Proto-Vietic *keːw (to call).

Verb

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kêu

  1. to shout, to cry
    chuâng kêu
    the bell rings
  2. to call for someone to see or help you

Descendants

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  • Vietnamese: kêu

References

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Vietnamese

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Etymology

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From Middle Vietnamese kêu, from Proto-Vietic *keːw (to call), a non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese (to call; to cry; to shout, SV: khiếu). Akin to Proto-Pearic *keːv.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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kêu (, , , , 𡆌, , 󱋣)

  1. to cry (to shout, scream, yell; to utter animal sounds)
    chó sủa, mèo kêu
    dogs bark, cats cry
    Mày mà không bảo con chó của mày im là tao giết nó bây giờ ! Đêm hôm cứ kêu ăng ẳng nhức cả đầu !
    I'll kill your stupid dog if you won't shut it up! It's been howling and giving me headache this whole night!
    tiếng kêu
    a call or cry
  2. to call for someone to see or help you
    Synonym: bảo
    kêu người đến giúp
    to call for help
    Kêu nó lên đây tao bảo.
    Tell him to see me.
    Mày kêu tao hả ?
    Did you want to see me? / Were you looking for me?
  3. Short for kêu ca (to whine).
    Cả hè không chịu làm, giờ bài dồn đống thì đừng có kêu.
    Stop whining. You didn't do a single exercise the whole summer, no wonder they've all piled up now.

Derived terms

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Derived terms