máy đèn

Vietnamese

Etymology

máy (“machine”) +‎ đèn (“light”). When there is an outage at night, people could know which house has a generator based on whether the light is on or not.

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [maj˧˦ ʔɗɛn˨˩]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [maj˨˩˦ ʔɗɛŋ˦˩]
(Saigon) IPA^(key): [ma(ː)j˦˥ ʔɗɛŋ˨˩]

Noun

(classifier cái, chiếc) máy đèn

(electricity) generator (machine that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy)
Synonym: máy phát điện

Nhà bên kia đường chạy máy đèn nên sáng trưng.
The house across the street is still well-lit since they have a generator.