Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Interminable, very long, seemingly endless: Used to describe a period of time that feels excessively long, tedious, and drawn-out, often due to boredom, waiting, or suffering. It conveys a subjective feeling of time passing slowly, not a precise measurement.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Một ngày đằng đẵng xem bằng ba thu. (An interminable day feels as long as three autumns.)
  • Những tháng năm đằng đẵng trong tù. (The interminable years in prison.)
  • Cô ấy chờ đợi một cách đằng đẵng. (She waited in an interminable manner.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "đằng đẵng" is primarily literary and poetic. It is rarely used in casual, everyday conversation. It often carries a connotation of hardship, longing, or profound boredom that makes time feel elongated.

Variants and Related Words

• Dài dằng dặc (adj): synonym for very long and tedious (often for time or speech).
  • Bài phát biểu dài dằng dặc. (The tediously long speech.)

Synonyms

• Interminable: Seemingly endless.
• Protracted: Lasting for a long time or longer than expected.
• Tediously long: Long and boring.

Related Idioms

• Một ngày đằng đẵng xem bằng ba thu: An idiom meaning a single, endlessly long day feels like three long autumns. It poetically expresses how suffering or longing can distort the perception of time.
  • Xa nhau, mỗi ngày là một ngày đằng đẵng. (Being apart, each day is an interminable day.)

1. Interminable
   • "một ngày đằng đẵng xem bằng ba thu " (Nguyễn Du)
2. An iinterminable day length of three autumns