dab tuag
The Hmong phrase for 'ugly' is dab tuag.
dab tuag is used to describe something or someone that is not pleasant to look at.
Did you know?
- The phrase 'dab tuag' can be viewed through its components, where one part relates to 'spirits' and the other to 'death'.
- While it means 'ugly', the first syllable dab shares a distant linguistic ancestor with the Chinese word for 'neck'.
Example conversation
Kao and Xiong are looking at a piece of modern art.
- KaoXiong, koj puas nyiam daim duab no?Xiong, do you like this picture?
- XiongTsis lees, kuv xav tias nws dab tuag.No, I think it is ugly.
- KaoKuv cog lus tias kuv tsis nyiam nws.I agree that I don't like it.
- XiongPeb mus saib lwm qhov os.Let's go look somewhere else.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries dab, CC BY-SA 4.0.
