Definition

1. Noun:
   • Seal: A marine mammal with a streamlined body, four flippers, and typically living in cold seas. The term "chó biển" literally translates to "sea dog," reflecting its dog-like head.
   • Sea-dog: An older or less common English term for a seal, directly corresponding to the literal Vietnamese translation.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Những con chó biển đang phơi nắng trên tảng đá. (The seals are sunbathing on the rock.)
  • Chó biển là động vật có vú sống ở biển. (Seals are marine mammals.)
  • Tôi đã thấy một đàn chó biển ở vịnh. (I saw a herd of seals in the bay.)

Advanced Usage

• "Họ chó biển": The biological family Phocidae, known as "true seals" or "earless seals."
  • Hải cẩu thường thuộc họ chó biển. (Seals often belong to the family Phocidae.)

Variants and Related Words

• Hải cẩu (n): The more common and general Vietnamese word for "seal."
  • Hải cẩu và chó biển thường chỉ cùng một loài. (Hải cẩu and chó biển usually refer to the same animal.)
• Sư tử biển (n): Sea lion, a related marine mammal with external ear flaps.

Synonyms

• Seal (n): The standard and most common English equivalent.
• Phocid (n): A technical term for a member of the family Phocidae (true seals).

Notes on Usage

• The term "chó biển" is less common in everyday modern Vietnamese than "hải cẩu". It is often found in older texts, zoological contexts, or used for descriptive emphasis based on its literal meaning ("sea dog").
• In English, "sea-dog" is an archaic or poetic term for a seal and is rarely used in modern scientific or common language. The primary and correct translation is "seal".

1. Seal, sea-dog