trâu

See also: Appendix:Variations of "trau"

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

• (certain coastal Northern dialects, endangered) tâu (dialects with /ʈ/-/t/ merger)
• (certain coastal North Central dialects, endangered) tu (dialects with /ʈ/-/t/ merger, no diphthongization)
• (North Central Vietnam) tru (no diphthongization)

Etymology

From Northern Middle Vietnamese tlâu, from Proto-Vietic *c-luː. Cognate with North Central Vietnamese tru, Muong tlu, Old Mon jlow (“ox, bull, cattle”) (whence Mon ဂၠဴ, Nyah Kur chǝlòw), Mang løː⁶ and Phong-Kniang jlǝːw.

Khmer ឆ្លូវ (chləw, “Year of the Ox”) was borrowed from a Vietic variety, and thus is not an inherited cognate of the terms listed above.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕəw˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʈəw˧˧]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [ʈəw˧˧]

Noun

(classifier con) trâu • (𤛠, 𬌥, 㺏, 𤠋)

1. (zoology) a water buffalo; Asiatic buffalo (a bovid of the species Bubalus bubalis)

   trâu trắng ― an albino water buffalo

2. (zoology, by extension) any buffalo of the genus Bubalus or the subtribe Bubalina)

Derived terms

• con trâu là đầu cơ nghiệp
• đàn gảy tai trâu
• đầu trâu mặt ngựa
• hoa nhài cắm bãi cứt trâu
• làm trâu làm ngựa
• trâu bò
• trâu buộc ghét trâu ăn
• trâu già gặm cỏ non
• trẻ trâu

 

See also

• nghé (“water buffalo calf”)
• bò (“Southern Yellow bovine”)

Adjective

trâu

1. (slang, video games) enduring; tough; hard

   Con boss game này trâu quá. ― This game's boss is super tough (to beat).