Definition

1. Noun:

   • Father, dad: An informal and affectionate term for one's father.
   • The number three: The cardinal number following two and preceding four.
   • A small, indefinite quantity; several, a few: Refers to an unspecified but relatively small number of items or instances.

2. Adjective:

   • Third: The ordinal number corresponding to the cardinal number three.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Father):
  • Ba tôi là công nhân. (My dad is a worker.)
• Noun (Number Three):
  • Một, hai, ba. (One, two, three.)
  • Một trăm lẻ ba. (One hundred and three.)
• Noun (A few):
  • Chỉ còn lại ba cái bánh. (Only a few cakes remain.)
• Adjective (Third):
  • Đây là lần thứ ba. (This is the third time.)
  • Ca ba bắt đầu lúc nửa đêm. (The third shift starts at midnight.)

Advanced Usage

• "Ba bề bốn bên": From all sides; on all sides. Describes being surrounded or pressured from every direction.
  • Họ bị tấn công ba bề bốn bên. (They were attacked from all sides.)
• "Ba chân bốn cẳng": As fast as one's legs could carry one; at top speed. Emphasizes great haste.
  • Nó chạy ba chân bốn cẳng. (He ran as fast as his legs could carry him.)
• "Ba chìm bảy nổi": To experience many ups and downs; a life full of vicissitudes. Describes a turbulent, unstable life with many hardships.
  • Cuộc đời ông ấy ba chìm bảy nổi. (His life has been full of ups and downs.)

Variants and Related Words

• Thứ ba (n): Tuesday.
• Thứ ba (adj): Third (ordinal number).
• Số ba (n): The number three.
• Bố (n): Father, dad (another common synonym for "ba").

Synonyms

• Bố (n): Father, dad.
• Cha (n): Father (more formal than "ba").
• Tía (n): Father, dad (regional, Southern Vietnam).
• Ba số (n): The number three.
• Vài (adj/pron): A few, several.
• Một vài (adj/pron): A few.

Related Idioms

• "Một cây làm chẳng nên non, Ba cây chụm lại nên hòn núi cao": One tree can't make a mountain, But many trees clumped together make a high mountain. This proverb emphasizes the power of unity and collective effort. Here, "ba" is used to mean "several" or "many," not strictly three.
• "Ăn ba miếng lót dạ": To eat a few bites to appease one's hunger.

1. Papa, daddy
2. Three; third
   • Má»™t trăm lẻ ba
     One hundred and three
   • Ca ba
     The third shift
3. Several, a few, a handful of, a number of
   • ăn ba miếng lót dạ
     To eat a few bites to appease one's hunger
   • Má»™t cây làm chẳng nên non, Ba cây chụm lại nên hòn núi cao (ca dao)
     One tree cant's make a mountain, But a number of trees clumped together make a high mountain
   • Ba bề bốn bên
     From all sides; on all sides
   • Ba chân bốn cẳng
     As fast as one's legs could carry one; at top speed
   • Ba chìm bảy nổi