gà
See also: Appendix:Variations of "ga"
Vietnamese
Etymology
From Proto-Vietic *r-kaː. Cognate with Thavung กา. Compare Khmer រកា (rɔkaa, “Year of the Rooster”).
Pronunciation
- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [ɣaː˨˩]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [ɣaː˦˩]
- (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [ɣaː˨˩]
Noun
(classifier con) gà (猗, 鵸, 𤠄, 𪂮, 𪃴, 𪃿)
- a chicken (bird)
- Khôn ngoan đối đáp người ngoài.
Gà cùng một mẹ chớ hoài đá nhau.- If you think you're so smart, engage outsiders.
We're chicks who share a mother, so don't fight each other.
- If you think you're so smart, engage outsiders.
Adjective
gà
- (slang) inexperienced or unskilled
- Thằng này gà quá! Coi anh mày làm này!
- You're so weak! Watch me, the expert, in action!
Verb
gà
- (card games) to up the ante
- Gà lần nào cũng thua thì đánh làm gì.
- Every time you/they up the ante, you/they lose, so why bother?
- to give away an answer (e.g., to a math exercise)
- Để em nó tự làm toán, anh đừng gà cho nó.
- Let him/her solve the math problem on his/her own; don't give the answer away.
- (board games) to give a hint or tip; to forgo a turn
- Cờ đương bí, ông ấy chỉ gà cho một nước mà thành thắng.
- In a stalemate, he gave up a single turn which meant giving up a victory.
Usage notes
The sense of "upping the ante" is primarily used in traditional Vietnamese card games such as tổ tôm, tài bàn, and chắn.
References
"gà" in Hồ Ngọc Đức, Free Vietnamese Dictionary Project (details)
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