Definition

1. Verb:
   • To part with, to leave, to separate: To depart from a person or place with which one has a close, intimate relationship, beginning to live apart.
   • (Used after a main verb) To leave no trace at all; to disappear completely: To vanish without leaving any sign or information.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Ra đi, biệt xóm làng. (To leave, parting with one's hamlet and village.)
  • Đi biệt một năm không có thư về. (He has been gone for a year without any letters home / leaving no trace.)
  • Từ dạo ấy anh ta biệt tin. (Since then, he has not been heard from.)
  • Giấu biệt đi. (To hide something clean away / so it leaves no trace.)

Advanced Usage

• "Tạm biệt": This is a fixed compound phrase meaning "goodbye" or "farewell." It literally implies a temporary parting.

  • Cô ấy vẫy tay nói "Tạm biệt!" (She waved and said "Goodbye!")

• "Biệt vô âm tín": An idiom meaning "to vanish without a trace" or "to not give any sign of life."

  • Người lính ấy ra trận rồi biệt vô âm tín. (That soldier went to war and then vanished without a trace.)

• "Gửi thư thư biệt, gửi lời lời bay": A proverb describing a situation where sent letters go unanswered and spoken messages are ignored or lost.

  • Anh cứ nhắn tin nhưng chẳng được hồi âm, đúng là "gửi thư thư biệt, gửi lời lời bay." (He kept texting but got no reply, it's truly a case of "letters remain unanswered, messages fly off.")

Variants and Related Words

• Biền biệt (Reduplicated form): An intensified form of "biệt," emphasizing a long, complete, and often indefinite separation or disappearance.
  • Nó đi biền biệt mấy năm nay. (He has been gone for several long years now.)

Synonyms

• Rời: To leave, to depart.
• Lìa: To part from, to separate from.
• Mất tích: To disappear, to go missing.
• Bặt vô âm tín: To cease all communication (similar to "biệt vô âm tín").

Notes on Usage

• **"Biệt" as a verb often carries a tone of finality, sadness, or mystery related to separation or disappearance.
• It is frequently used in literary, poetic, or formal contexts. In everyday spoken Vietnamese, its use is often found in set phrases like "tạm biệt" or the reduplicated form "biền biệt."
• When used after another verb (e.g., , ), it functions as a complement emphasizing the completeness or finality of the action (leaving no trace).

verb

1. To part with, to leave
   • ra đi biệt xóm biệt làng
     he went off, parting with hamlet and village
2. dùng phụ sau động từ) To leave behind no traces at all
   • đi biệt một năm không có thư về
     he has been gone a year without leaving behind any traces at all and without writing home
   • từ dạo ấy anh ta biệt tin
     since then, he has not been heard from
   • giấu biệt đi
     to hide something clean away
   • gửi thư thư biệt, gửi lời lời bay
     letters remain unanswered, oral messages fly off without response