Definition

1. Noun:
   • A rocky promontory, a rocky headland, or a rocky outcrop extending into a body of water: "gành" refers to a coastal geographical feature, typically a stretch of rugged, rocky shore or a cape formed by rocks.
   • A rocky rapid or stretch of turbulent water in a river (less common, often considered a variant of "ghềnh"): In some contexts, particularly in older or regional usage, it can refer to a rocky, shallow, and rapid section of a river.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Chúng tôi ngồi ngắm hoàng hôn trên một mỏm gành. (We sat watching the sunset on a rocky headland.)
  • Sóng đánh mạnh vào những tảng đá ở gành. (The waves crash strongly against the rocks at the rocky outcrop.)
  • Con thuyền nhỏ khó lòng vượt qua khúc sông nhiều gành đá. (The small boat could hardly pass the river section with many rocky rapids.)

Advanced Usage

• "Gành" vs. "Ghềnh": While historically and phonetically related, in modern standard Vietnamese, "ghềnh" is the more common and standard term for a river rapid or rocky shallow. "Gành" is more specifically associated with coastal rock formations. However, they are sometimes used interchangeably in certain regions or poetic contexts.
  • Gành Đá Dĩa (The Dĩa Stone Reef/Plateau) is a famous tourist site in Phú Yên province, Vietnam, named for its unique columnar basalt formations by the sea.

Variants and Related Words

• Ghềnh (noun): Rapid, rocky shallow in a river; the more standard term for this fluvial feature.
  • Vượt thác ghềnh (To navigate through rapids and waterfalls).
• Mũi đá (noun): Literally "rocky cape"; a near-synonym for the coastal meaning of "gành".
• Bãi đá (noun): Rocky beach; can be related but implies a wider, flatter area.

Synonyms

• Mỏm đá: Rocky promontory/cape.
• Vách đá: Cliff (can be coastal).
• Thác (for the river meaning): Waterfall (specifically for a vertical drop, whereas "ghềnh" is for turbulent, shallow rapids).

Related Phrases (Collocations)

• Gành đá: Rocky reef/outcrop (a very common collocation).
  • Nguy hiểm khi tắm biển ở khu vực có gành đá. (It's dangerous to swim in the sea where there are rocky reefs.)
• Đứng trên gành: To stand on the rocky headland.
• Sóng vỗ gành: Waves lapping against the rocky shore.

Related Idioms

• "Lên thác xuống ghềnh": Literally "to go up waterfalls and down rapids"; figuratively means to face numerous difficulties and hardships in life. (Note: This idiom uses "ghềnh", not "gành", but is semantically related to the river rapid meaning.)
  • Cuộc đời anh ấy trải qua bao phen lên thác xuống ghềnh. (His life has been through many ups and downs, many hardships.)