Definition

1. Verb (archaic/literary):
   • To recruit troops: To enlist or gather soldiers for an army or military force. This term originates from historical contexts involving the raising of armies.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Nhà vua ra lệnh chiêu binh để mở rộng lãnh thổ. (The king ordered the recruitment of troops to expand the territory.)
  • Vị tướng ấy đang chiêu binh ở các làng lân cận. (That general is recruiting troops from neighboring villages.)

Advanced Usage

• "chiêu binh mãi mã": A classical four-word idiom meaning "to recruit troops and buy horses." It describes comprehensive preparation for war or, by extension, any major undertaking requiring the assembly of resources and personnel.
  • Họ chiêu binh mãi mã, chuẩn bị cho cuộc chiến sắp tới. (They recruited troops and bought horses, preparing for the coming war.)

Variants and Related Words

• Chiêu mộ (v): to recruit, to enlist. A more modern and general term for recruiting people, not limited to soldiers.

  • Công ty đang chiêu mộ nhân tài. (The company is recruiting talent.)

• Tuyển binh (v): to conscript, to draft soldiers. Often implies a more formal or compulsory enlistment process.

  • Năm đó, chính phủ tuyển binh rất nhiều. (That year, the government conscripted many soldiers.)

Synonyms

• Recruit troops: The direct English equivalent.
• Raise an army: To gather and organize a military force.
• Enlist soldiers: To enroll individuals into military service.

Related Idioms

• Chiêu binh mãi mã: As detailed above, this is the primary idiom associated with the term, encapsulating the full preparation for warfare.
• Chiêu hiền đãi sĩ: To recruit and treat talented individuals with respect. This idiom shares the word "chiêu" (to recruit) but is used in a civil, scholarly, or administrative context rather than a military one.
  • Vị lãnh chúa nổi tiếng với chính sách chiêu hiền đãi sĩ. (The lord was famous for his policy of recruiting and honoring scholars.)

1. To recruit troops
   • chiêu binh mãi mã
     to recruit troops and purchase horses, to prepare for war; to recruit confederates