phay

Vietnamese

Etymology

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 破 (SV: phá), borrowed from a form when monophthongization had not yet taken place in Chinese, but is likely later than the borrowing of ngài (“moth”) and mài (“to grind”), which have [-aːj].

Cognate with Iu Mien paaix, also preserved the diphthong. Doublet of phá.

Pronunciation

Verb

phay • (非, 棑, 㓟)

  1. to chop; to cut open

Derived terms

  • xé phay
  • dao phay (“cleaver”)
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