khiêm tốn

Vietnamese

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 謙遜.

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [xiəm˧˧ ton˧˦]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [kʰiəm˧˧ toŋ˦˧˥] ~ [xiəm˧˧ toŋ˦˧˥]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [kʰim˧˧ toŋ˦˥] ~ [xim˧˧ toŋ˦˥]

Adjective

khiêm tốn

1. modest; humble
2. (colloquial, euphemistic, humorous, of people's height, level, etc.) below average

   Anh ấy có chiều cao khiêm tốn.

   He's vertically challenged.

   (literally, “He has humble height.”)