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máy. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
máy, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
máy in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
máy you have here. The definition of the word
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Vietnamese
Etymology
Cognate with Muong Bi bẳl (as in bẳl măt (“to blink”), equivalent to Vietnamese máy mắt).
Originally a verb meaning "to move, to touch". This meaning can still be seen in the t- reduplicative táy máy and the -âp reduplicative mấp máy, as well as some compounds like mó máy and the aforementioned máy mắt.
Pronunciation
Verb
máy • (𢵯, 𣛠, 𠃅)
- (no longer used in isolation) to move around
- (no longer used in isolation) to touch and feel
1914, Nam quốc phương ngôn tục ngữ bị lục (南國方言俗語備錄):𠁀𧍆𧍆𢵯𠁀𧑂𧑂陶- Đời cua cua máy, đời cáy cáy đào.
- A big crab's life just fiddling with its surroundings, a small crab's life is just digging.
Noun
(classifier cái, cỗ) máy • (𢵯, 𣛠, 𠃅)
- (obsolete) effect; mechanism
18th century, Nguyễn Gia Thiều (阮嘉韶) (1741-1798), Cung oán ngâm khúc (宮怨吟曲), Phú Văn đường tàng (富文堂藏), printed in 1866 edition:箕世局如印聀梦
𠃅玄微𨷑㨂坤量- Kìa thế cục như in giấc mộng,
Máy huyền vi mở đóng khôn lường. - See, how my situation is as if it's a dream,
The mysterious way that things move, constantly changing and unpredictable.
- machine
- engine
- internal combustion engine
- (colloquial) phone, mobile phone
- nhấc máy ― to pick up the phone
Usage notes
- The classifier cỗ (“< a set of dishes in a feast”) seems to be mostly used in translation and the phrase cỗ máy appears to be quite lexicalized to the extent that its usage resembles that of a compound.
See also