Definition

1. Noun:
   • Kaoliang: A type of grain, specifically a variety of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), originally from China, known for its round, large grains.
   • Fine food / Delicacy: High-quality, delicious, and often luxurious food. This meaning is almost exclusively used in the literary compound "cao lương mỹ vị".

Usage Examples

• Noun (Kaoliang):
  • Người dân trồng cao lương để sản xuất rượu. (The people grow kaoliang to produce liquor.)
• Noun (Fine food):
  • Bữa tiệc thịnh soạn với đủ các thứ cao lương mỹ vị. (The lavish banquet was full of all kinds of delicacies.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is rarely used in modern, everyday Vietnamese to refer to the grain. The more common word for sorghum is "cây lúa miến" or "bo bo".
• Its primary contemporary use is in the fixed, literary phrase "cao lương mỹ vị" (literally "fine grain and delicious flavors"), which means sumptuous food, gourmet dishes, or delicacies.
  • Anh ấy quen với cao lương mỹ vị từ nhỏ. (He has been accustomed to fine dining since childhood.)

Variants and Related Words

• Cao lương mỹ vị (idiomatic phrase): Delicacies, gourmet food, fine fare.
• Sơn hào hải vị (idiom): Another literary phrase for delicacies, specifically those from the mountains and the sea.

Synonyms

• For : Sorghum.
• For : Delicacy, gourmet food, dainty.

Related Idioms

• Cao lương mỹ vị: As stated above, this is the standard idiom. It conveys a sense of luxurious and exquisite eating.
  • Cuộc sống vương giả với cao lương mỹ vị mỗi ngày. (A princely life with delicacies every day.)

noun

1. Kaoliang
2. Good fare, delicate dishes
   • cao lương mỹ vị
     delicacy
   • bữa tiệc nhiều cao lương mỹ vị
     a banquet full of delicacies