Definition

1. Verb:
   • To enshroud: The act of wrapping a deceased person's body in cloth or shrouds before placing it in a coffin, as part of traditional funeral rites.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Sau khi tắm rửa, gia đình sẽ tiến hành khâm liệm cho người quá cố. (After the washing, the family will proceed to enshroud the deceased.)
  • Nghi lễ khâm liệm cần được thực hiện một cách trang nghiêm và tôn kính. (The enshrouding ritual must be performed solemnly and respectfully.)
  • Theo phong tục, việc khâm liệm thường do người thân trong gia đình đảm nhiệm. (According to custom, the enshrouding is usually undertaken by close family members.)

Advanced Usage

• "Công việc khâm liệm": The work/task of enshrouding.
  • Công việc khâm liệm đã hoàn tất, thi hài đã được đặt vào quan tài. (The enshrouding work was completed, and the remains were placed in the coffin.)

Variants and Related Words

• Liệm (verb): To shroud; to wrap (a body). This is a core component of the compound verb "khâm liệm".
• Khâm (noun, archaic): Cloth used to wrap a corpse. This term is now almost exclusively used in the compound "khâm liệm".

Synonyms

• Bọc thi hài: To wrap the remains/corpse.
• Quấn vải liệm: To wind with a shroud.

Notes on Meaning and Usage

• Cultural Specificity: "Khâm liệm" is a culturally specific term deeply rooted in traditional Vietnamese funeral customs. It describes a precise ritual step, not merely the general act of wrapping.
• Formality and Context: This is a formal and solemn term used almost exclusively in the context of death, funerals, and ancestral rites. It is not used in everyday conversation.
• Compound Nature: The word is a compound of "khâm" (shroud cloth) and "liệm" (to shroud). In modern usage, it is treated as a single, inseparable lexical unit referring to the complete ritual act.

verb

1. to enshroud