bốn bể
Definition
- Noun:
- The four seas: A classical Vietnamese term referring to the four cardinal directions or the four seas that were traditionally believed to surround the land, symbolizing the entire world or the whole of humanity.
- The whole world, all corners of the earth: Used metaphorically to mean everywhere, the entire globe, or all people under heaven.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Anh ấy đã đi khắp bốn bể. (He has traveled to all four corners of the earth.)
- Tình người ở bốn bể đều giống nhau. (Human kindness is the same all over the world.)
Advanced Usage
- "bốn bể một nhà": Literally "the four seas are one home". This is a set phrase expressing the ideal that the whole world is one family, promoting universal brotherhood and unity.
- Theo tinh thần "bốn bể một nhà", chúng ta nên giúp đỡ lẫn nhau. (In the spirit of "the whole world is one family", we should help each other.)
- "năm châu bốn bể": Literally "five continents, four seas". A common paired phrase meaning the entire world, all continents and oceans.
- Ước mơ của cô ấy là được đi khắp năm châu bốn bể. (Her dream is to travel across all five continents and four seas.)
Variants and Related Words
- Bể (n): Sea, ocean. This is the singular form. "Bốn bể" is the plural concept.
- Năm châu (n): The five continents. Often paired with "bốn bể".
Synonyms
- Thế giới: The world.
- Khắp nơi: Everywhere.
- Thiên hạ: All under heaven; the world and its people.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- Bốn bể là nhà: Literally "the four seas are home". Describes someone who travels everywhere or feels at home anywhere in the world.
- Là một thủy thủ, ông ấy sống với tinh thần "bốn bể là nhà". (As a sailor, he lives with the spirit of "the four seas are home".)
- Bốn bể anh em: Literally "brothers from the four seas". Refers to comrades or friends from all over.
- Trại hè quốc tế quy tụ những người bạn "bốn bể anh em". (The international summer camp gathers friends who are "brothers from the four seas".)