Definition

1. Noun:
   • Sea and river: A classical Sino-Vietnamese compound word literally meaning "sea and river," used metaphorically to describe something vast, immense, or boundless in scope.
   • Magnanimity, great generosity: The primary figurative meaning, referring to a person's immense, all-encompassing tolerance and generosity of spirit, as vast as the sea and rivers.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Lòng khoan dung của ông ấy rộng như hải hà. (His forgiveness is as vast as the sea and rivers.)
  • Vị lãnh đạo ấy nổi tiếng với lượng hải hà. (That leader is famous for his magnanimity.)

Advanced Usage

• "Lượng hải hà": This is the most common fixed phrase. It directly translates to "a measure/volume like the sea and rivers" and is used exclusively to praise someone's great generosity, forbearance, or magnanimous character.
  • Chỉ có người có lượng hải hà mới có thể tha thứ cho lỗi lầm lớn như vậy. (Only a person of great magnanimity can forgive such a major mistake.)

Variants and Related Words

• Khoan dung (adj/n): Tolerant, lenient; tolerance. (A more common, modern synonym for the quality of being forgiving.)
• Rộng lượng (adj): Generous, big-hearted. (A common synonym for generosity of spirit.)
• Bao dung (adj/n): Tolerant, forgiving; forbearance. (Another close synonym emphasizing acceptance.)

Synonyms

• Magnanimity: The quality of being generous and forgiving, especially toward a rival or someone less powerful.
• Generosity: The quality of being kind and generous.
• Vastness: (For the literal sense) The quality of being very large or immense.

Notes on Usage

• Register: This is a literary, formal, and somewhat classical term. It is rarely used in everyday spoken Vietnamese and is most commonly found in writing, literature, historical contexts, or formal speeches.
• Fixed Phrase: The word is almost always used in the set phrase "lượng hải hà". Using alone is very rare in modern Vietnamese.
• Figurative Use: In contemporary usage, the literal meaning ("sea and river") is virtually obsolete. The word is understood almost exclusively in its figurative sense describing a noble human quality.

noun

1. sea and river (fig) generosity
   • Lượng hải hà
     Magnanimity