English Idioms and their equivalents in Vietnamese

APPENDIX A: IDIOMS ABOUT HUMAN FEELINGS

Appendix A: Idioms about Human Feelings

I/ Love:

English idioms Meanings Vietnamese idioms

Absence makes the heart grow

fonder

Used to say that when you are

away from sb you love, you love

them more

Giaän thì maéng, laëng thì

thöông

A woman/ man after one’s own

heart

A person you particularly like

because he has the same

interests as you

Ngöôøi ñaøn oâng / phuï nöõ

cuûa loøng toâi

Be close / near / dear to sb's

heart

Be a person or thing that sb is

very fond of

Say nhö ñieáu ñoå / cheát meâ

cheát meät / meâ tít thoø loø

Come straight from the heart

From the bottom of my heartTruly love sb Töø taän ñaùy loøng

Have eyes only for sb / Only

have eyes for sbOnly love sb Ñeå maét tôùi ai ñoù

Have got it bad Be very much in love Yeâu caây neân daáu ñeán hoa

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Head over heel (in love) Completely in love Yeâu ñieân ñaûo

In one's heart of heartsIn your deepest feelings /

thoughts

Töø taän ñaùy loøng / saâu

thaúm trong tim

Sweet on someoneLike sb very much in a romantic

way

Yeâu nhau say ñaém / thaàm

thöông troäm nhôù / yeâu

thaàm daáu buïng

The apple of one's eyeA person, usually a child, who sb

love very muchCuïc cöng cuûa toâi

The way to sb's heartThe way to make sb like or love

youÑöôøng vaøo con tim

With all your heartUsed for emphasizing how

strongly you feel about sthVôùi taát caû taám loøng

II/ Happy:


A barrel / a bundle of laughs Very amusing, a lot of fun Vui noå trôøi

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As cheerful as the birds

As eager as a bridegroom

As gay as a lark

As glad as a fly

As happy as a child

As happy as a clam

As happy as a king

As happy as Larry

As happy as the day is long

As jolly as a shoe brush

As merry as a cricket

As please as Punch

Very happy Vui nhö saùo

Extremely happyVui nhö hoäi

Vui nhö teát

Be a good sport

Be generous, cheerful and

pleasant, especially in a

difficult situation

Laïc quan yeâu ñôøi

Be a sight for sore eyesBe a person or thing that you

are happy to seeÑeïp loùa maét

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Be all smiles

Be very happy and smiling,

especially after feeling sad or

worried about sth

Nôû gan nôû ruoät

Be grateful / thankful for small

mercies

Be happy that a bad situation is

not even worseNhö cheát ñi soáng laïi

Be in / Go into raptures about /

over sb / sth

Be extremely enthusiastic

about sb/ sth you like

Be in high spirits

In the heat of the moment

To be bitten by the bug

Be happy and cheerful Ñang cao höùng

Beam / Grin / Smile from ear to

ear

Be smiling a lot because you

are very pleased about sthNgoaùc mieäng tôùi mang tai

Blow sb's mindMake you / sb feel extreme

pleasureNôû töøng khuùc ruoät

Bright - eyed and bushy tailedLively and cheerful, pleased

and proudMaët maøy töôi roùi

Do sb's heart goodMake sb feel happy, more

cheerful, hopeful

Feel like a million dollars Feel / look very good Vui nhö traêng raèm

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Float / walk on air Very happy Nhö ôû treân maây

In seventh heaven

On cloud nineBe very happy about sth

Nhö ôû treân maây

Treân chín taàng maây

Get a kick from / out of sthGet a feeling of excitement,

enjoyment out of sthHoà hôûi phaán khôûi

Glad to see the back of sb

Happy when you no longer

have to deal with sb / sth

because they are annoying or

unpleasant

Nhö truùt ñöôïc gaùnh naëng

Grin like a Cheshire catSmile widely in a foolish or self-

satisfied wayCöôøi nhaên nhôû

Have a time of your life

Have a whale of time

Enjoy yourself, be very happy

or excitedVui loøng haû daï

Have stars in your eyes

Happy and excited about future

because you believe that you

will be successful and famous

Maët töôi nhö hoa

In the clover Live happily and comfortably in Söôùng nhö tieân

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prosperity and success

In transports of joy / delight Feeling very great joy Môû côø trong buïng

Keep sb amused

Give sb interesting things to do

or entertain them so that they

do not become bored

Mua vui cho thieân haï

Kick up your heels Be relaxed and enjoy yourself

Laugh like drain Laugh very loudly Cöôøi nhö saám / cöôøi nhö phaù

Laugh up your sleeve at sb /

sthBe secretly amused by sth Cöôøi thaàm trong buïng

Laugh your head offLaugh very loudly and for a

long time

Cöôøi laên cöôøi boø / cöôøi

noân ruoät

Like the cat that got / stole the

cream

Very pleased or satisfied with

yourselfNhö baét ñöôïc vaøng

On the edge of your seatVery excited and giving your

full attention to

On the top of the world Very happy or proud Maùt ruoät maùt gan

Over the moon Very happy and excited Maët töôi hôn hôùn

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Split your sides laughing / with

laughterLaugh a lot, laugh loudly Cöôøi nhö naéc neû

The more the merrier

The more people or things

there are, the better the

situation will be or the more fun

people will have

Caøng ñoâng caøng vui

To be like a dog with two tails Be extremely happy Möøng nhö cha cheát soáng laïi

To be mad / keen on sthBe very interested in or

enthusiastic about sth / sbSöôùng quaù hoaù roà

Whoop it up

1/ Enjoy yourself very much

with a group of noisy people

2/ Make people excited or

enthusiastic about sth

With open arms Extremely happy to see sb Tay baét maët möøng

Your heart leapsHave a sudden feeling of

happiness or excitementKhaáp khôûi möøng thaàm

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iii/ sadness:


As cheerless as the grave

As sad as nightVery sad

Buoàn nhö ñöa ñaùm / buoàn

nhö chaáu caén/ buoàn nhö cha

cheát

Be drown in tearsGioït chaâu laõ chaõ / nöôùc

maét tuoân traøo

Be in the blue Be depressed Buoàn xo buoàn ruïi

Break one's heartMake sb feel extremely

unhappyTan vôõ traùi tim

Crocodile tears (insincere

sadness)An insincere show of sadness Nöôùc maét caù saáu

Cry your eyes out Cry a lot and for a long time

Khoùc heát nöôùc maét / khoùc

nhö ri / khoùc nhö con gaùi veà

nhaø choàng

Cut to the quick Deeply hurt in one’s feelings Ruoät ñau nhö caét

Down in the dumps Feeling unhappy or without Maët maøy uû eâ / æu xìu nhö

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hopebaùnh ña nhuùng nöôùc / æu xìu

nhö baùnh bao chieàu

Down in the mouth Mieäng meùo xeäch

Drown one's sorrowsPeople drink a lot to forget their

pain, problems or unhappinessÑaém chìm trong ñau khoå

Have one's head in one's boots

Be dispirited, deeply

depressed, timorously anxious

about sth

Maët maøy uû doät

Long face Maët chaûy daøi

Lose heart Become discouragedTiu ngæu nhö meøo bò caét tai /

tiu ngæu nhö choù cuïp ñuoâi

Sob your heart outCry noisily for a long time

because you are very sadKhoùc ñöùng khoùc ngoài

That Monday morning feeling

A feeling of being depressed

because you have to start a

new week back at work

Löø ñöø nhö oâng Töø giöõ ñeàn

With a heavy / sinking heartWith a feeling of sadness or

fearMaët naëng nhö ñaù ñeo

Your heart sink Used to say that you suddenly Maët naëng nhö chì

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feel sad or depressed

Iv/ hatred:


Avoid sb / sth like the plague

Keep somebody at arm's lengthAvoid sb / sth completely Traùnh nhö traùnh huûi

Can't stand the sight / sound of

sb / sth

Dislike or hate to (see / hear)

sb / sthGheùt cay gheùt ñaéng

Hate sb like poison Extremely hate sb Gheùt ngon gheùt ngoït

Hate sb's guts

Hate the sight of sb / sthDislike sb very much

Gheùt nhau nhö choù vôùi

meøo / nhö maët traêng vôùi

maët trôøi / nhö nöôùc vôùi löûa

Have no time for sb / sthDislike and have no respect for

sb /sthCaêm thuø tôùi taän xöông tuûy

Have no use for sb / sth Strongly dislike sb /sth Khoâng ñoäi trôøi chung

There’s no love lost between A Two people dislike each other Gheùt ñaøo ñaát ñoå ñi

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and B

V/ anger:


A black lookAn angry or disapproving

expression on sb’s faceAÙnh maét hình vieân ñaïn

Add fuel to the fire / flamesDo or say sth which makes sb

even more angryÑoå theâm daàu vaøo löûa

As angry as a wasp

As red as a beetroot

As red as a turkey - cock

Very angry

Noùng nhö Tröông Phi / maët

ñoû nhö gaác/ maët ñoû nhö gaø

choïi / maët ñoû nhö vang

At each other throatsAngrily fighting or arguing with

each otherMuoán aên töôi nuoát soáng

Bad / ill feelings Anger between people, especially

after an argument or

Töùc anh aùch

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disagreement

Be / Get steamed up Noåi côn tam baønh

Be a thorn in your flesh / side

Be a person or thing that

repeatedly annoys you or stops

you doing sth

Caùi gai trong maét

Be hopping mad

Be in a foul moodExtremely angry Baàm gan soâi maùu

Be on sb' s back

Give sb grief about / over sthAnnoy or criticize sb a lot Maéng vuoát maët khoâng kòp

Be on the warpathBe angry and ready for an

argument or a fight about sthNoùng nhö löûa ñoát

Be out of your mind Be / go crazy Giaän maát khoân

Become red in the face Ñoû maët tía tai

Bite a person's head off

Jump down one's throat

Speak to sb angrily without a

good reasonNoåi traän loâi ñình

Blow your top / Blow your

stack

Fly into a rage / temper

Suddenly become angry Noåi maùu xung thieân / noåi

côn tam baønh/ giaän ñoû

maët / ñoû maët tía tai

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Fly into a tantrum

Fly off handle

Have / throw a tantrum / See

red

Cross as two sticks Annoyed, irritated, petulant Maët naëng maøy chì

Cut sb deadPretend not to see sb or not to

greet sb to show your angerMaët laïnh nhö tieàn

Do a slow burn Slowly get angry Giaän soâi maùu leân

Do sb 's head inMake sb feel confused, upset, and

/ or annoyedChoïc oå kieán löûa

Drive sb up the wallMake sb very annoyed, drive sb

crazyTöùc nöôùc vôõ bôø

Feel out of sorts Feel ill or bad tempered Nhaên nhö maët hoå phuø

Flip your lid Become very angry Töùc loän ruoät

Foam at the mouth Giaän suøi boït meùp

For crying out loud

Hell's teeth

Used to express anger or

frustrationMaém mieäng day tay

Get a person' s back up Make sb annoyed Moù daùi ngöïa / treâu ong choïc

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Give somebody / Get the

humpraén

Get in sb' s hairAnnoy sb by preventing them

from doing sthKyø ñaø caûn muõi

Get on your high horse

Be annoyed because you think

that sb has not treated you with

enough respect

Baàm gan tím ruoät

Get one's goat Annoy sb very much Töùc loän ruoät

Get out of bed on the wrong

side / Get up on the wrong

side of the bed

Be bad – tempered from the

moment you get upTöùc ñaày gan ñaày ruoät

Get steamed up (about sth)Become very angry or excited

about sthSoâi gan noåi maät

Give sb hell

Shout at / speak angrily to sb

because they have done sth

wrong

Maéng cho taét beáp / taùt

nöôùc vaøo maët

Gnash your teeth

Show one’s teeth

Feel very angry and upset about

sth, especially because you

Nghieán raêng nghieán lôïi /

nghieán raêng treøo treïo / nhe

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cannot get what you want nanh giô vuoát

Go apeBecome extremely angry or

excitedTöùc nhö boø ñaù

Go ballistic

Go bananas / Have a pink /

blue fit

Become very angry Noåi maùu xung thieân

Go off deep endGet into a state of violent

emotion of angerGiaõy naûy nhö ñæa phaûi voâi

Have / throw a fit Become very excited or angry Ñieân tieát leân

Have a cowSuddenly become very excited or

angryGiaän ñieân ngöôøi

Have a short temper Noùng tai noùng maët

Have sb' s guts for garters

Be very angry with sb and punish

them severely for sth they have

done

Töùc traøo maùu hoïng

Here we go again

Used for showing you are angry

or annoyed that sth is starting to

happen again

Bieát roài khoå laém noùi maõi

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His bark is worse than his

bite

Sb is not really as angry or unkind

as they seem

His blood is up

Hit the roof / ceiling / Raise

the roof

Make sb's blood boil

Suddenly become very angry Soâi maùu leân / noùng maùu

Hot under the collar Angry or annoy Noùng gaùy

In high dudgeon In an angry or offended mood Cau maët cau maøy

Keep your hair on

Used for telling sb who is angry or

very excited about sth to keep

calm

Haï hoûa

Kick up / Make / Create /

Raise a stink about sth

Show that you are angry about a

situation, often by protesting in

public

Like a bear with a sore head Very bad – tempered Hung haêng con boï xít

Like a red rag to a bullCausing a person to be excitedly

and violently angryÑaèng ñaèng saùt khí

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Make sb' s hair curl Shock or disturb sb Toùc tai döïng ngöôïc

Purple with rageGiaän tím maët / baàm gan tím

ruoät

Run high Be strong and angry or excited Töùc caønh hoâng

Send sb away / off with a flea

in their ear(Refuse sb’s request) angrily

Shake the dust from one's

feet

Leave a place without request or

with relief or generally in anger or

disgust

Sick to your stomach Disgusted or angry Töùc nhö ñaám bò boâng

Smooth somebody's ruffled

feathers

Make sb feel less angry or

offendedNuoát giaän laøm laønh

Spit blood venomShow that you are very angry,

speak in an angry wayGaét nhö maém toâm

Take sth amiss

Feel offended about sth, perhaps

because you understand in a

wrong way

Take sth to heart Be very offended by sb’s criticism Töùc oùi maùu

Tear one's hair Be very worried or angry Voø ñaàu böùt tai

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The feathers / fur / sparks will

flyThere will be anger, annoyance

To hell with sb / sth

Used to express anger or dislike

and to say that you no longer

care about sb/ sth

Bieán ñi cho khuaát maét!

Turn in his / her grave Likely to be shock or angry

Up in arms about / over sthVery angry and protesting very

strongly

Vi/ embarrassment:


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A burning shame

A crying shameTheïn ñoû maët

As shy as a fawn

As shy as a school girl

E leä theïn thuøng / e theïn nhö

con gaùi môùi veà nhaø choàng

Become red in faceMaët ñoû nhö gaác / maët ñoû

nhö gaø choïi

Die of embarrassment Xaáu hoå muoán cheát

Hang your head in / for shame

Put to shame

Look or feel embarrassed or

ashamedNgöôïng chín caû maët

Not know where to hide oneself

Khoâng bieát chui loã neû naøo /

chui ñaàu xuoáng ñaát / chæ

muoán ñoän thoå

Vii/ worry / afraid:


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A fuss about nothing

Make a song and dance about

sth

A lot of anger or worry about sth

that is not important

Roái tinh roái muø / lo boø

traéng raêng

A shrinking violetSb is very shy and is easily

frightenedYeáu boùng vía

As afraid as a grasshopper

As nervous as a cat

As nervous as a mouse

As pale as a ghost

Run nhö caày saáy / taùi ngaét

nhö gaø caét tieát / maët xanh

nhö chaøm ñoå / maët traéng

nhö thaèng cheát troâi / run

nhö deõ

Be / Feel like jelly

(of legs or knees) feel weak

because you are nervous or

frightened

Nhuõn nhö con chi chi

Be / Stand in awe of sb / sthAdmire sb / sth and be slightly

afraid of them / itKính nhi vieãn chi

Be dead scared of sth Sôï cheát khieáp

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Be frightened / nervous /

scared of your own shadow

Be very easily frightened, be

very nervousSôï huøm sôï caû cöùt huøm

Be in a stewBe / become very nervous about

sthMaát aên maát nguû

Be on hot bricks

Like a cat on hot bricks

On pins and needles

Tense, excited, nervous or

restlessNhö ngoài treân ñoáng löûa

Be scared / bored witlessBe extremely frightened or

boredKinh hoàn baït vía

Blue in the faceSôï xanh maët / maët vaøng

nhö ngheä

Drive sb out of their mind / witsMake sb crazy or very nervous

or worried

Giaäm giaät nhö choù thaùng

baûy

Fear has big eyes Thaàn hoàn naùt thaàn tính

Fear has quick ear

Chim phaûi sôï caønh caây

cong / phaûi moät caùi, raùi

ñeán giaø

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Frighten / Scare the life out of

sbFrighten sb very much Sôï khieáp ñaûm

Get / Have the jitters

Feel anxious and nervous,

especially before an important

event or before having to do sth

difficult

Nhö ngoài phaûi coïc

Get / Have butterflies in your

stomach

Get / have nervous feeling in

your stomach before doing sth

Kieán boø trong buïng / ruoät

roái nhö tô voø

Go hot and cold all over

Suddenly feel very worried,

upset or frightened when you

remember sth very unpleasant

Laïnh caû ngöôøi

Have ants in your pants

Be unable to stay still because

you are anxious or excited about

sth

Ñöùng ngoài khoâng yeân /

noùng ruoät soát loøng

Have cold feet

No longer want to continue what

you intended or have started

because you are nervous or

afraid

ÔÙn xöông söôøn

Have kittens Be nervous and anxious, AÊn khoâng ngon, nguû khoâng

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especially when you are waiting

for news of sth

yeân / soát ruoät soát gan /

ruoät noùng nhö löûa

He cannot say / cry Bo to a

goose

He is so timid that he can never

utter a word to assert himself on

any point however small and

against anybody however

unformidable

Nhaùt nhö thoû ñeá

Ill at easeNervous, especially in a social

situationSôï phaùt oám

In a (flat) spinVery confused, worried or

excitedRoái nhö canh heï

In a blue funk Be depressed Maët xanh nhö ñít nhaùi

In a latherIn a nervous, angry or excited

state

Cuoáng leân nhö chuoät phaûi

khoùi

Jump out of your skin

Make a quick, sudden movement

because sth has suddenly

frightened you

Nhaûy döïng leân / giaät baén

ngöôøi / nhö giaãm phaûi löûa

Lead sb a merry dance Cause sb a lot of trouble or Lo cuoáng caø keâ

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worry

Make one's flesh creep

Make sb' s skin crawl

Make you feel afraid or full of

disgust

Hoaûng kinh hoàn vía / hoàn

sieâu phaùch laïc

On edge Nervous, worried or anxious Nhö phoûng nöôùc soâi

Pale as death itself Maët xanh nhö taøu laù

Scare, annoy the hell out of sth Scare, annoy sb very much Kinh taâm taùng ñôûm

Scared / Frighten sb out of his

witsFrighten sb very much Doïa cho hoàn vía leân maây

Shake in one's boots Afraid of sth Sôï noåi gai oác / noåi da gaø

Stand in terror of sth

Stop sb in their tracks

Suddenly make sb stop by

frightening or surprising them;

suddenly stop because sth has

frightened you

Ñöùng cheát traân / ñöùng

söõng nhö trôøi troàng / ñöùng

nhö bò choân chaân / ñöùng trô

nhö phoãng

Too close for comfortSo near that you become afraid

or anxious

With bated breathHardly able to breath because

you are very anxious about sthLo soát voù

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Your hair stand on endYou feel very frightened,

nervous Döïng toùc gaùy

Your heart misses a beatYou have a sudden feeling of

fear, excitementSôï ñöùng tim

Your heart is in your mouth You feel very anxious or afraid Sôï maát maät

vIii/ envy:


Green eyed - monster JealousyGhen maët xanh maøy xaùm / ghen

loàng ghen loän

Green with envyVery jealous (wanting sth that sb

else has)

Con gaø töùc nhau tieáng gaùy /

ghen aên töùc ôû / ghen aên gheùt

uoáng

Keep up with the Joneses Try to have all the possession Khoâng chòu thua chò keùm em

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and social achievements that

your neighbors or other people

around you have, especially by

buying what they buy

Pale with envy

Sick with jealousy

Traâu buoäc gheùt traâu aên / voâ

duyeân gheùt keû coù duyeân /

khoâng tieàn gheùt keû coù tieàn

caàm tay

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Documents

English Idioms and their equivalents in Vietnamese