mặt

Attested as mặt in the Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum (1651).

Originally meaning “eye” and is the regular descendant of Proto-Vietic *mat (“eye”), further from Proto-Austroasiatic *matʔ (“eye”). Related to mắt (“eye”). The semantic change of “eye” > “face” can also be seen in Muong, most dialects of which use a single form, măt, to mean both “eye” and “face”.

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [mat̚˧˨ʔ]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [mak̚˨˩ʔ]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [mak̚˨˩˨]
• Homophone: mặc (southern Vietnamese)

(classifier cái, bộ, gương, khuôn, bản) mặt • (末, 𩈘, 𫖀, 密, 𪾺, 𬰢)

1. face (front part of head)
2. face (facial expression)
3. face (public image)
4. face (geometry: bounding surface of a polyhedron)
5. face (surface, especially a front or outer one)
6. aspect; dimension

   về nhiều mặt ― in many aspects

mặt

1. (archaic) right (of direction)

   Synonym: phải

   tay mặt ― the right hand/arm