Definition

1. Noun:
   • Vicissitudes, the ups and downs of life: "dâu bể" refers to the unpredictable and often drastic changes in life, fortune, or the world, symbolizing impermanence and the cycle of rise and fall. It is a poetic and philosophical term.

Usage

• "Dâu bể" is a literary and somewhat archaic term, primarily used in poetry, classical literature, or formal, reflective speech to convey a sense of profound change and the transient nature of existence. It is not commonly used in everyday conversation.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Cuộc đời đầy những dâu bể. (Life is full of vicissitudes.)
  • Trải qua bao phen dâu bể, ông ấy vẫn giữ được sự bình thản. (Having gone through so many ups and downs, he still maintains his composure.)
  • Câu chuyện kể về những thăng trầm, dâu bể của một dòng họ. (The story tells of the rises and falls, the vicissitudes of a family line.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is a shortened, poetic form of the idiom "bể dâu" or the fuller phrase "bãi bể nương dâu" / "bể hóa nương dâu". These all originate from a classical allusion about the sea (bể) turning into a mulberry field (dâu) and vice versa, representing great earthly transformations.

Variants and Related Words

• Bể dâu (n): This is the more common form of the same idiom, with identical meaning (vicissitudes).
• Thăng trầm (n): Literally "rise and fall"; a more common synonym for ups and downs.
• Biến thiên (n): Change, variation (often used in more formal or scientific contexts, but can apply to life's changes).
• Phù sinh (n): Fleeting life, transitory existence (a related philosophical concept).

Synonyms

• Thăng trầm: Ups and downs.
• Đổi thay: Changes (less poetic, more general).
• Biến cố: Event, upheaval (emphasizes a specific incident of change).

Related Idioms

• Bãi bể nương dâu: (The sea has turned into mulberry fields) – An idiom directly describing great worldly transformations, the source of "dâu bể".
• Cuộc bể dâu: The vicissitudes of life.
• Sự đời bể dâu: The ever-changing nature of life.

1. xem bể dâu