Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Well-to-do, comfortably off: Describes a person or family whose financial situation is stable and sufficient, allowing them to live without want or significant hardship. It implies having enough resources for daily needs and some comforts.
   • Having enough to eat / Not in need: The core meaning relates directly to having enough food and, by extension, enough material resources to live adequately.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Gia đình họ bây giờ có ăn rồi. (Their family is well-to-do now.)
  • Dạo này công việc tốt, nhà tôi cũng có ăn. (Work has been good lately, so my family is also comfortably off.)
  • Cụ ấy là người có ăn trong làng. (He is a well-off person in the village.)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase "có ăn" is often used in contrast to a previous state of need or poverty. It describes an achieved state of modest financial security rather than great wealth.
• It can function similarly to a stative verb in colloquial speech.
  • Nhà nó có ăn lên rồi. (His household has become comfortably off.)

Variants and Related Words

• Khá giả (adj): Well-off, prosperous. This is a close synonym but may imply a slightly higher level of affluence than "có ăn".
• Đủ ăn đủ mặc (idiomatic phrase): To have enough to eat and wear; to be adequately provided for. This phrase explicitly details the meaning contained within "có ăn".

Synonyms

• Comfortably off: Having enough money to live comfortably.
• Well-to-do: Prosperous; having a good financial position.
• Financially stable: Secure in terms of money and resources.

Related Idioms

• Ăn nên làm ra: To prosper in one's endeavors, to be successful. This idiom describes the process leading to becoming "có ăn".
  • Nhờ chăm chỉ, họ ăn nên làm ra và dần trở nên có ăn. (Thanks to hard work, they prospered and gradually became well-to-do.)

1. Well-to-do, comfortably off