suông tình

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The Vietnamese word "suông tình" is a colloquial expression that refers to the act of going fishing (or engaging in any similar activity) and returning without having caught anything. In English, you could think of it as "coming back empty-handed" after a fishing trip.

Usage Instructions:

• "Suông tình" is often used in informal conversations. It can describe not just fishing, but any situation where someone attempts to achieve something but ends up with nothing to show for it.

Examples:

1. Literal Use:

   • "Hôm qua tôi đi câu cá nhưng lại suông tình."
   • (Yesterday I went fishing but came back empty-handed.)

2. Figurative Use:

   • "Tôi đã dành cả ngày tìm việc nhưng cuối cùng cũng chỉ suông tình."
   • (I spent the whole day job hunting but ended up with nothing.)

Advanced Usage:

• You can use "suông tình" in a more abstract way to express disappointment in any effort that didn't yield results.
  • Example: "Cô ấy đã nỗ lực rất nhiều trong dự án này, nhưng cuối cùng cũng chỉ suông tình."
  • (She put in a lot of effort in this project, but in the end, it was all for nothing.)

Word Variants:

• There are no direct variants of "suông tình," but you might hear related phrases like "trở về tay không," which also means coming back empty-handed.

Different Meanings:

• "Suông tình" specifically relates to the idea of returning without success. It does not have significantly different meanings but can be applied to various contexts beyond fishing.

Synonyms:

• Trở về tay không: This phrase also means returning empty-handed.
• Thất bại: This means to fail, but is broader and does not specifically imply an attempt to catch something.

Academic

1. (thông tục) Come back empty-handed
   • Đi kiếm cá, nhưng suông tình
     To go fishing and come back empty-handed