kì cục
adjectiveverb
Hanoi [ki˨˩ kʊwk͡p̚˧˨ʔ]Huế [kɪj˦˩ kʊwk͡p̚˨˩ʔ]Saigon [kɪj˨˩ kʊwk͡p̚˨˩˨] browser voice
Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →
kì cục means strange; odd; weird.
Meanings of kì cục in English
Adjective
- Southern Vietnam, colloquial strange; odd; weird
Verb
- colloquial to work or toil (at something); to do something painstakingly
Example sentences with kì cục
- Bộ phim chỉ có thể được mô tả là kì cục. This film can only be described as grotesque.
Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).
Etymology
Sino-Vietnamese word from 奇 (“wonderful, strange”) and 局 (“bent, crooked”), Literally, “novel and tricky”. Often used with a homonym from 棋局 (qíjú, “arrangement of pieces on a chessboard”) to form kì cục kì cục (棋局奇局) (novel and tricky moves). As this word traveled to the South, where the original meaning is not well-understood, people associated it with a negative connotation.
Frequently asked questions
What does kì cục mean in English?
kì cục (adjective) means "strange; odd; weird".
How do you pronounce kì cục?
IPA: Hanoi [ki˨˩ kʊwk͡p̚˧˨ʔ]; Saigon [kɪj˨˩ kʊwk͡p̚˨˩˨]. Tones: kì — falling tone (huyền), cục — heavy tone (nặng).