Definition

1. Verb (Limited Use):
   • To give alms; to give relief: To distribute money, food, or other aid to the poor, needy, or victims of disaster. This verb is almost exclusively used in specific compound phrases.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Chính quyền địa phương phát chẩn cho các gia đình bị lũ lụt. (The local government distributes relief to families affected by the flood.)
  • Người dân trong vùng đói kém phải đi lĩnh chẩn. (People in the famine-stricken area had to go receive alms.)

Advanced Usage

• This word is considered literary or formal and is rarely used alone in modern Vietnamese. Its core meaning is almost always expressed through set phrases.
• The concept involves organized, often official, distribution of aid, not casual giving.

Variants and Related Words

• Phát chẩn (v): To distribute relief/aid/alms. This is the most common phrase containing "chẩn".
• Lĩnh chẩn (v): To receive relief/aid/alms.
• Cứu chẩn (v): To provide relief and aid (a more formal term combining "cứu" - to save/rescue - and "chẩn").

Different Meanings

• Note on Homonym: The word "chẩn" in modern Vietnamese is more commonly recognized as a component of the word "chẩn đoán" (to diagnose). However, this is a distinct Sino-Vietnamese root. The "chẩn" defined here (related to alms) is an older, separate usage.

Synonyms

• Cứu trợ: To provide relief/aid.
• Phát đồ cứu tế: To distribute relief supplies.
• Bố thí: To give alms (often with a more religious or charitable connotation).

Related Idioms

• There are no common idioms specifically for this word due to its limited use. Its meaning is encapsulated in the fixed phrases "phát chẩn" and "lĩnh chẩn".

verb

1. (dùng hạn chế trong một vài tổ hợp) To give alms, to give relief
   • lĩnh chẩn
     to receive alms