Definition

1. Verb:
   • To fight, to engage in physical combat: "đánh nhau" primarily refers to the act of two or more parties physically fighting or brawling with each other.
   • To be at war, to wage war: On a larger scale, it can describe nations or groups being in a state of armed conflict with one another.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Trẻ con đánh nhau trên sân trường. (The children were fighting on the schoolyard.)
  • Hai nước đó đã đánh nhau trong nhiều thập kỷ. (Those two countries have been at war with one another for decades.)
  • Đừng đánh nhau, hãy nói chuyện để giải quyết. (Don't fight; talk to resolve it.)

Advanced Usage

• "đánh nhau tay đôi": to have a one-on-one fight, a duel.

  • Hai võ sĩ quyết định đánh nhau tay đôi. (The two martial artists decided to have a one-on-one fight.)

• "đánh nhau chí tử": to fight to the death.

  • Hai kẻ thù đánh nhau chí tử. (The two enemies fought to the death.)

Variants and Related Words

• Đánh lộn (verb): a more colloquial synonym for "đánh nhau," meaning to brawl or scuffle.

  • Mấy đứa trẻ đánh lộn vì một món đồ chơi. (The kids brawled over a toy.)

• Xung đột (noun/verb): conflict; a more formal term that can encompass non-physical disputes as well.

  • Xung đột vũ trang (armed conflict).

• Chiến tranh (noun): war; specifically refers to large-scale, organized armed conflict.

  • chiến tranh thế giới (world war).

Synonyms

• Cãi nhau: to argue, to quarrel (typically verbal, but can escalate).
• Xô xát: to scuffle, to come to blows (implies a brief, less organized physical fight).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

• Đánh nhau với: to fight with (someone/something).

  • Anh ta đánh nhau với kẻ trộm. (He fought with the thief.)

• Đánh nhau vì: to fight over/for (something).

  • Họ đánh nhau vì một mảnh đất. (They fought over a piece of land.)

Related Idioms

• Đánh nhau như mổ bò: to fight fiercely/violently (literally: "to fight like slaughtering a cow").

  • Hai đội bóng đánh nhau như mổ bò trên sân. (The two soccer teams fought fiercely on the field.)

• Chó cắn chó: (idiom, not a direct variant) dogs biting dogs; used to describe a vicious internal fight where all parties are at fault.

  • Đó là một vụ chó cắn chó. (It was a case of dogs biting dogs / a vicious internal fight.)

1. Fight
   • Trẻ con đánh nhau
     The children were fighting
2. Be at war with one another
   • Hai nước đánh nhau
     The two countries were at war with one another