Definitions

1. Verb:
   • To erect, to raise, to set up, to put up: To place something in a vertical or upright position. This is the most common and general meaning.
   • To build, to construct: To create a structure (like a house, a gate) by assembling materials so that it stands on a foundation.
   • To establish, to found: To create and give solid, lasting existence to something abstract or significant, like a country or a career.
   • To compose, to structure (an artistic work): To arrange and organize elements to form a complete artistic piece, such as a play, a film, or a painting composition.
   • To fabricate, to concoct (a story): To invent or make up a story, often with a negative connotation of being false.
   • (Mathematics) To construct: To draw a geometric figure that satisfies given conditions, typically using only a ruler and a compass.

Usage Examples

• To erect/set up:
  • Anh ấy dựng chiếc lều trong vườn. (He set up the tent in the garden.)
  • Công nhân đang dựng cột điện. (The workers are erecting the utility pole.)
• To build/construct:
  • Họ dựng một ngôi nhà mới. (They built a new house.)
  • Thành phố dựng một tượng đài để tưởng niệm. (The city erected a monument for remembrance.)
• To establish/found:
  • Vua Hùng dựng nước Văn Lang. (The Hung Kings founded the Van Lang nation.)
  • Ông ấy dựng nên cơ nghiệp từ hai bàn tay trắng. (He built his career from scratch.)
• To compose/structure:
  • Đạo diễn đang dựng một vở kịch mới. (The director is staging a new play.)
  • Họa sĩ dựng bố cục cho bức tranh. (The painter composed the layout for the painting.)
• To fabricate:
  • Đó là một câu chuyện dựng đứng. (That is a completely fabricated story.)

Advanced Usage

• "dựng đứng": To fabricate completely, to concoct a lie.
  • Tin đồn đó hoàn toàn bị dựng đứng. (That rumor was completely fabricated.)
• "dựng tóc gáy": To make one's hair stand on end (due to fear or horror).
  • Câu chuyện ma khiến tôi dựng tóc gáy. (The ghost story made my hair stand on end.)
• "dựng nước": To found a nation.
  • Lễ hội kỷ niệm ngày dựng nước. (The festival commemorates the national founding day.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dựng lên (phrasal verb): To set up, to erect (emphasizes the action of causing to stand).
  • Họ dựng lên một sân khấu tạm thời. (They set up a temporary stage.)
• Dựng lại (phrasal verb): To rebuild, to reconstruct.
  • Sau trận hỏa hoạn, họ phải dựng lại ngôi nhà. (After the fire, they had to rebuild the house.)
• Dựng hình (compound noun): Geometric construction.
  • Bài tập về dựng hình trong hình học. (An exercise on geometric construction.)
• Dựng phim (compound noun): Film editing/directing.
  • Công đoạn dựng phim rất quan trọng. (The film editing stage is very important.)

Synonyms

• Xây dựng: To build, to construct (often larger scale, more permanent).
• Thiết lập: To establish, to set up (often for systems, rules).
• Lập nên: To found, to establish.
• Dựng lên: To set up, to erect (synonymous phrasal verb).

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Dựng lên: To set up, to erect. See example above.
• Dựng lại: To rebuild, to reconstruct. See example above.

Related Idioms

• "Dựng chuyện": To make up a story, to fabricate.
  • Đừng có dựng chuyện! (Don't make up stories!)
• "Dựng mốc": To set a milestone, to establish a landmark (literal or figurative).
  • Dự án này dựng mốc mới cho ngành công nghiệp. (This project sets a new milestone for the industry.)

verb

1. to erect; to raise; to set up; to put up