Definition

1. Noun:
   • Frontier, border: The boundary or limit of a country or territory; the dividing line between one nation and another.
   • Territory, country: The land or domain under the sovereignty of a nation; often used in a poetic or formal sense to refer to the homeland.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Giữ gìn bờ cõi là nhiệm vụ thiêng liêng. (To protect the country's borders is a sacred duty.)
  • Quân đội canh giữ bờ cõi. (The army guards the frontier.)
  • Đuổi bọn cướp nước ra khỏi bờ cõi. (To drive the invaders out of the country.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "bờ cõi" is often used in formal, literary, historical, or patriotic contexts to evoke a sense of the nation's sacred land and sovereignty. It is less common in everyday conversation about modern political borders.

Variants and Related Words

• Biên giới (n): Border, frontier. This is the more common, modern term for a political boundary.
  • Hai nước đàm phán về vấn đề biên giới. (The two countries negotiated the border issue.)
• Lãnh thổ (n): Territory, domain.
  • Lãnh thổ Việt Nam là thiêng liêng và bất khả xâm phạm. (Vietnam's territory is sacred and inviolable.)

Synonyms

• Border: A line separating two countries or areas.
• Frontier: The extreme limit of settled land or a nation's territory.
• Domain: A territory over which rule or control is exercised.

Related Idioms

• Giữ gìn bờ cõi: To protect/safeguard the country (its borders and territory). This is a fixed, patriotic phrase.
  • Nhiệm vụ của mọi công dân là giữ gìn bờ cõi. (The duty of every citizen is to protect the homeland.)

noun

1. Frontier, border
2. Territory, country
   • giữ gìn bờ cõi
     to protect the country
   • đuổi bọn cướp nước ra khỏi bờ cõi
     to drive the invaders out of the country