Definition

1. Noun:

   • Blood vessel: The literal, biological meaning referring to the tubular structures (arteries, veins, capillaries) that carry blood throughout the body.
   • Lifeline; vital element; lifeblood: The primary figurative meaning. It refers to the most critical, indispensable factor or resource that sustains the existence, function, or development of a system, organization, or endeavor.

2. Noun (less common):

   • Bloodline; lineage; descent: Refers to familial or ancestral connection, shared blood relations.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Literal):
  • Bác sĩ kiểm tra các huyết mạch của bệnh nhân. (The doctor examines the patient's blood vessels.)
• Noun (Figurative - Lifeline):
  • Tiền là huyết mạch của mọi công cuộc xây dựng. (Money is the lifeblood of all construction works.)
  • Nguồn nước ngọt là huyết mạch của người dân trên đảo. (The freshwater source is the lifeline for the island's inhabitants.)
• Noun (Bloodline):
  • Anh em cùng huyết mạch. (Brothers of the same bloodline.)

Advanced Usage

• The figurative use is dominant in modern Vietnamese, especially in formal, economic, or strategic contexts to emphasize critical importance.
• It often describes abstract systems: (transportation lifeline), (information lifeline), (economic artery).

Variants and Related Words

• Mạch máu (n): The standard, purely biological term for "blood vessel."
• Huyết thống (n): The more common and precise term for "blood relation" or "lineage."

Synonyms

• Lifeline: Something indispensable for survival.
• Lifeblood: A vital source of strength and vitality.
• Artery: A main channel or route (figurative).
• Vital element: A crucially important component.

Related Idioms

• Mạch sống: Literally "life pulse"; used similarly to mean a vital channel or essential element for survival.
  • Con sông là mạch sống của cả vùng. (The river is the life pulse of the entire region.)

1. Blood-vessel
2. Breath of life, breath of nostrils; life-line
   • Tiền là huyết mạch của mọi công cuộc xây dựng
     Money is the life-line (breath of life) of all construction works
3. Blood line, line of descent
   • Anh em cùng huyết mạch
     Brothers of the same blood line