lái

See also: lǎi and lài

Mandarin

Pronunciation

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Romanization

lái (lai², Zhuyin ㄌㄞˊ)

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Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 舵 (“rudder; helm”, SV: đà).

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [laːj˧˦]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [laːj˨˩˦]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [laːj˦˥]

Verb

lái • (梩)

1. to control (a vehicle); to drive, to ride, to pilot, etc.

   lái xe ― to drive a car

2. (informal) to digress, to sidetrack, or to put one's own spin on

Usage notes

• Not to be confused with nói lái.

Noun

lái

1. steering wheel; steering control
2. (colloquial) Short for lái xe (“driver”) or lái đò (“boatman”).
3. (colloquial) used to refer to a merchant or trader