bài văn
Definition
- Noun:
- An essay / a composition: A piece of writing on a particular subject, often written by a student as an assignment, structured with an introduction, body, and conclusion.
- A text / a written piece: A general term for a coherent piece of writing, such as a passage, article, or literary work.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Cô giáo giao cho chúng tôi một bài văn về mùa hè. (The teacher assigned us an essay about summer.)
- Bài văn này được trích từ một cuốn tiểu thuyết nổi tiếng. (This text is excerpted from a famous novel.)
- Em đã viết bài văn nghị luận rất cẩn thận. (I wrote the argumentative composition very carefully.)
Advanced Usage
- In academic contexts, "bài văn" often implies a structured, formal piece of writing for school, distinct from shorter notes or creative writing like poetry.
- It can refer to a specific text being analyzed or discussed in literature class.
Variants and Related Words
Bài tập làm văn (n): a composition exercise; a more specific term for a writing assignment.
- Hôm nay, bài tập làm văn của chúng em là tả một con vật. (Today, our composition exercise is to describe an animal.)
Đoạn văn (n): a paragraph; a distinct section of a longer piece of writing.
- Mỗi đoạn văn nên trình bày một ý chính. (Each paragraph should present one main idea.)
Synonyms
- Essay: a short piece of writing on a particular subject.
- Composition: a written work, especially one created for school.
- Text: the main written part of a book or other work.
Related Idioms
- Đầu *bài văn cuối bài thơ*: Literally "the head is an essay, the tail is a poem." Used to describe something that starts formally but ends chaotically or incoherently.
- Kế hoạch của họ thật là đầu bài văn cuối bài thơ. (Their plan is completely disjointed.)