trí cùng lực kiệt

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

• chí cùng lực kiệt

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 智窮力竭 (“exhausted; at the end of one's rope”). Compare 窮竭／穷竭 (qióngjié, “to exhaust”).

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕi˧˦ kʊwŋ͡m˨˩ lɨk̚˧˨ʔ kiət̚˧˨ʔ]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʈɪj˨˩˦ kʊwŋ͡m˦˩ lɨk̚˨˩ʔ kiək̚˨˩ʔ]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʈɪj˦˥ kʊwŋ͡m˨˩ lɨk̚˨˩˨ kiək̚˨˩˨]

Adjective

trí cùng lực kiệt

1. (literary) stumped and exhausted; at a loss as to what to do; at one's wits' end; at the end of one's rope