Definition

Noun: A state of extreme difficulty, distress, or suffering caused by a severe misfortune or calamity. It refers to a period of great trouble or disaster.

Usage

• Hoạn nạn is used to describe a serious, often prolonged, situation of hardship or disaster that befalls a person or group.
• It is a formal and literary term, commonly found in written texts, proverbs, or formal speech.
• It often appears in the structure "trong cơn hoạn nạn" (in the time of misfortune) to specify the period of crisis.

Examples

• (True friendship is shown most clearly in misfortune.)
• (Their whole family overcame the calamity together.)
• (He is always ready to help his friends in times of distress.)

Advanced Usage

• Lúc hoạn nạn mới biết bạn hiền: (A proverb) Adversity reveals true friends. Literally: "Only in times of misfortune do you know who your true friends are."
• Gặp cơn hoạn nạn: To encounter/face a calamity.
  • Doanh nghiệp đang gặp cơn hoạn nạn về tài chính. (The business is facing a calamity in its finances.)

Variants and Related Words

• Hoạn (Noun, literary): Misfortune, disaster. Often used in compound words like tai hoạn (calamity).
• Tai hoạ (Noun): Disaster, catastrophe. Similar in meaning but can imply a more sudden, single catastrophic event.
• Khốn khó (Adjective/ Noun): Destitute, in dire straits. Focuses more on the state of poverty and difficulty.
• Nguy nan (Adjective/ Noun): Perilous, dangerous. Emphasizes the aspect of danger and risk.

Synonyms

• Tai ương (Noun): Calamity, scourge.
• Bất hạnh (Noun): Misfortune, unhappiness.
• Khổ nạn (Noun): Suffering and tribulation.

Related Idioms

• Hoạn nạn có nhau: To stick together through thick and thin. Literally: "To have each other in misfortune."
  • Vợ chồng họ đã hoạn nạn có nhau suốt mấy chục năm. (They have stuck together through thick and thin for decades.)

noun

1. calamity; misfortune; disaster
   • giúp đỡ ai trong cơn hoạn nạn
     to assist someone in misfortune