cố sự
Definition
- Noun:
- An old matter; a past event; a bygone affair: Refers to something that happened in the past, often with a sense of it being concluded, historical, or no longer relevant to the present.
- An old story; a tale of old: Can denote a narrative or account of past events, sometimes with a legendary or anecdotal quality.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Đó chỉ là cố sự đã qua, đừng nhắc lại nữa. (That is just a bygone affair; don't bring it up again.)
- Ông cụ thường kể cho chúng tôi nghe những cố sự của làng. (The old man often tells us the old tales of the village.)
Advanced Usage
- This word is considered somewhat archaic or literary in modern Vietnamese. It is more likely to be encountered in formal writing, historical contexts, or classical literature than in everyday conversation.
Variants and Related Words
- Chuyện cũ (n): an old story, a past matter. (This is the more common, modern equivalent).
- Anh đừng nhắc đến chuyện cũ đó. (Please don't bring up that old matter.)
- Sự kiện cũ (n): a past event.
- Sách này ghi lại các sự kiện cũ. (This book records past events.)
Synonyms
- Past event: something that has already happened.
- Bygone affair: a matter belonging to a previous time.
- Old tale: a story from the past.
Related Idioms
- Cố sự tân biên: literally "old stories newly compiled," referring to a retelling or reinterpretation of historical events.
- Tác phẩm này là một kiểu cố sự tân biên. (This work is a kind of retelling of old tales.)