Definition

1. Noun:
   • Night, darkness of night: "đêm tối" refers to the period of darkness between sunset and sunrise, or specifically to the dark quality of the night. It emphasizes the absence of light.
   • Figurative meaning: a dark period, a time of difficulty or obscurity: It can metaphorically describe a period of hardship, ignorance, or moral decline.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Trong đêm tối, mọi vật đều im lặng. (In the dark of night, everything is silent.)
  • Cánh đồng chìm trong đêm tối mịt mùng. (The field was submerged in pitch-black night.)
  • Đất nước trải qua một thời kỳ đêm tối của lịch sử. (The country went through a dark period of history.)

Advanced Usage

• Literary/Descriptive Use: Often used in literature and descriptive writing to create an atmosphere of mystery, fear, or profound quiet.
  • Bóng đêm tối bao trùm lên ngôi làng. (The shadow of darkness enveloped the village.)
• Metaphorical Use: Used to describe ignorance, a lack of understanding, or a morally corrupt era.
  • Hắn sống trong đêm tối của sự ngu dốt. (He lived in the darkness of ignorance.)

Variants and Related Words

• Đêm (n): Night. A more general, neutral term for the night time.
  • Đêm nay trời nhiều sao. (Tonight the sky is full of stars.)
• Tối (adj/n): Dark; evening/night. Can function as an adjective meaning "dark" or as a noun meaning "evening".
  • Căn phòng rất tối. (The room is very dark.)
  • Tối nay tôi bận. (I am busy tonight.)
• Bóng tối (n): Darkness, shadow. Often interchangeable with "đêm tối" but can refer to darkness in any context, not just nighttime.
  • Sợ bóng tối (To be afraid of the dark)

Synonyms

• Bóng đêm: Night, darkness (very similar, slightly more poetic).
• Màn đêm: The veil of night (poetic).

Related Phrases

• Giữa đêm tối: In the dead of night.
  • Một tiếng động lạ vang lên giữa đêm tối. (A strange sound rang out in the dead of night.)
• Xuyên màn đêm tối: To pierce through the dark night.
  • Ánh đèn xuyên màn đêm tối. (The light pierced through the dark night.)

1. Night
   • Trong đêm tối
     At night, during the night