Definition

1. Verb:
   • To promote; to elevate: To raise someone to a higher position or rank, often by providing support or favor. This is the primary and most common meaning.
   • To lift; to raise (one's limbs): To physically lift or raise a part of the body, typically used in negative constructions to express extreme fatigue or inability.

Usage Examples

• Verb (to promote):

  • Giám đốc quyết định cất nhắc anh ấy lên vị trí trưởng phòng. (The director decided to promote him to the department head position.)
  • Công ty có chính sách cất nhắc nhân tài. (The company has a policy of promoting talent.)

• Verb (to lift limbs):

  • Tôi mệt đến mức không cất nhắc nổi cánh tay. (I am so tired that I can hardly lift my arm.)
  • Sau trận ốm, bà cụ không cất nhắc được chân. (After the illness, the old lady could not lift her leg.)

Advanced Usage

• The meaning "to promote" often carries a connotation of patronage or being elevated by a benefactor. It implies being helped or favored to advance.
• The physical meaning "to lift" is almost exclusively used for body parts and is commonly found in the negative structure "" (cannot lift...).

Variants and Related Words

• Thăng chức (v): to promote (specifically in a job context). This is a more neutral synonym.

  • Cô ấy được thăng chức sau một năm làm việc chăm chỉ. (She was promoted after a year of hard work.)

• Nâng đỡ (v): to support, to assist (can be a broader form of support, not always leading to promotion).

  • Người quản lý luôn nâng đỡ các nhân viên mới. (The manager always supports new employees.)

Synonyms

• Promote: to advance someone to a higher position.
• Elevate: to raise to a higher level or rank.
• Lift: to raise something physically.

Related Idioms

• While "cất nhắc" itself is not typically part of a fixed idiom, its usage in the context of promotion relates to the concept of "cất nhắc nhân tài" (to promote the talented), which is a common phrase in organizational and administrative language.

1. To be hardly able to lift (one's limbs)
   • mệt không cất nhắc nổi chân tay
     to be so tired that one can hardly lift one's limbs
2. To promote
   • cất nhắc người có tài
     to promote talents