cùng xin viện lề

Definition

1. Idiom:
   • To jointly request retirement on the grounds of old age: A classical Vietnamese idiom describing a situation where someone, typically an elderly official or person in a position, uses the reason of old age to formally petition for retirement. It implies a respectful and proper procedure for stepping down due to seniority.

Usage Examples

• Idiom:
  • Sau năm mươi năm phục vụ, các cụ cùng xin viện lề. (After fifty years of service, the elders jointly requested retirement on the grounds of old age.)
  • Đến tuổi, ông ấy cùng xin viện lề về quê an hưởng tuổi già. (Having reached the age, he requested retirement on the grounds of old age to return to his hometown and enjoy his later years.)

Advanced Usage

• This idiom is rooted in classical Sino-Vietnamese administrative culture. It is formal and literary, often used in historical, bureaucratic, or respectful narratives about retirement.

Variants and Related Words

• Xin hưu (v): to request retirement (a more modern and general term).

  • Ông giám đốc đã nộp đơn xin hưu. (The director has submitted a request for retirement.)

• Về hưu (v): to retire.

  • Bà ấy đã về hưu được ba năm. (She has been retired for three years.)

Synonyms

• To retire on grounds of age: To leave a job because of being old.
• To petition for retirement: To formally ask to retire.

Related Idioms

• Cáo lão về quê: to announce old age and return to one's homeland (a similar classical idiom for retiring to one's native village).
  • Cụ quan nhất quyết cáo lão về quê. (The mandarin was determined to announce old age and return to his homeland.)