Spelling of "Giơ" and "Rơ"

Spelling of

In the section "Instructions on how to use the dictionary," Professor Dr. Nguyen Van Khang (NVK) states: "This 'Vietnamese Spelling Dictionary' is compiled based on the spelling treatment in the 'Vietnamese Dictionary' of the Institute of Linguistics" (edited by Hoang Phe). However, in reality, NVK did not "treat the spelling" according to the aforementioned document, but may have relied on some other source, leading to many errors. Occasionally, in articles on spelling published in the "Talking About Words" column, we have corrected these serious spelling errors. In this article, we continue to point out the error in the entry for "giơ" (to raise/raise).

Regarding the "raise" section, NVK's dictionary provides the following instructions:

"The wheel axle is loose (= wobbly) // loose. → Do not write: loose, wobbly."

Therefore, according to NVK's dictionary, when describing a machine part that no longer fits tightly with another part, you can write "bị giơ" or "bị rơ"; but when talking about tacit agreement or mutual understanding, there is only one way to write it: "ăn giơ," not "ăn dơ" or "ăn rơ."

However, the entry for "raise" in the dictionary contains two spelling errors and two incorrect instructions:

1. If you want to say that parts or components no longer fit together, you should write "RƠ" (meaning loose or misaligned), not "GIƠ".

"Rơ" is a word of French origin, from "jeu" meaning looseness, rattling, or distightness due to wear and tear during operation and use. The Vietnamese dictionary (Hoang Phe - Vietlex) explains: "rơ [Fr: jeu] t. [a part in machinery] no longer fits tightly with other parts. A wheel axle is loose ~ a wheel is loose."

2. If "ăn giơ" means eating dirty (e.g., eating filthy, living in filth), then it should be written as "dồ" (e.g., eating filthy; as dirty as a crab in a crab's burrow - Idiom).

3. If "ăn giơ" means a tacit agreement, or mutual understanding, or harmonious cooperation, then it should be written as "rơ". "Rơ" in "ăn rơ" is also of French origin (jeu = play, game).

The Vietnamese dictionary (Hoang Phe - Vietlex) explains: “to collude • to reach a tacit agreement, to agree on a course of action [often used in a negative sense]. An accountant colludes with the director to withdraw public funds. • to agree with each other, to create a harmonious coordination in actions and words. Two people perform very harmoniously together. Synonym: to be in agreement.”

Therefore, writing "bị giơ" or "ăn giơ" as instructed by NVK's Vietnamese Spelling Dictionary is incorrect. According to this dictionary, the correct spelling should be "bị rơ" (not fitting together), "ăn dơ" (eating dirty), and "ăn rơ" (underlying agreement; harmonious coordination).

Man Nong (Contributor)

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/chinh-ta-gio-va-ro-259497.htm