chia uyên rẽ thuý

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

• rẽ thuý chia uyên

Etymology

From chia rẽ + uyên, short for uyên ương (“mandarin duck”) + thuý, synonym of bói cá (“kingfisher”). Compare uyên ương, chia loan rẽ phượng for similar expressions about love through birds.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕiə˧˧ ʔwiən˧˧ zɛ˦ˀ˥ tʰwi˧˦]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [t͡ɕiə˧˧ ʔwiəŋ˧˧ ʐɛ˧˨ tʰwɪj˨˩˦]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ciə˧˧ (ʔ)wiəŋ˧˧ ɹɛ˨˩˦ tʰ⁽ʷ⁾ɪj˦˥]

Phrase

chia uyên rẽ thuý

1. (figurative) to separate two lovers