Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Respectful and affectionate; loving with respect: "kính ái" describes a feeling or attitude that combines deep respect with sincere love, often directed towards elders, superiors, or revered figures.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Tình cảm của học trò dành cho thầy giáo già thật là kính ái. (The students' feelings for the old teacher are truly respectful and affectionate.)
  • Bà ấy nhìn người chồng quá cố bằng ánh mắt kính ái. (She looked at her late husband with a gaze full of respectful love.)

Advanced Usage

• This term is formal and literary, often used to describe profound, virtuous sentiments in contexts like family (towards parents, grandparents), teacher-student relationships, or towards historical/moral figures.
  • Tinh thần kính ái tổ tiên là một nét đẹp văn hóa. (The spirit of respectful love for ancestors is a cultural beauty.)

Variants and Related Words

• Kính yêu (adj): A very close synonym, also meaning "to respect and love." It is slightly more common in modern usage.
  • Người dân kính yêu vị lãnh tụ vĩ đại. (The people respect and love the great leader.)

Synonyms

• Tôn kính (v): To revere, to venerate. This emphasizes the respect component more strongly than the affectionate love found in "kính ái."
• Quý mến (v): To be fond of, to hold in affectionate esteem. This emphasizes the affectionate component more than the deep respect in "kính ái."

Related Idioms/Phrases

• Kính trên nhường dưới: (Idiom) To respect those above and yield to those below. This idiom shares the core value of respect ("kính") present in "kính ái."
  • Gia đình ấy sống theo đạo lý kính trên nhường dưới. (That family lives by the principle of respecting elders and yielding to juniors.)

1. Respect and love