Definition

1. Idiom (Thành ngữ):
   • To kowtow repeatedly; to bow and scrape a hundred times: A figurative expression describing the act of bowing one's head and prostrating oneself many times, signifying extreme deference, deep gratitude, or abject apology. It conveys a level of submission or thankfulness so profound it is as if one performed a hundred bows.

Usage Examples

• Idiom:
  • Anh ta đã khấu đầu bách bái để tạ lỗi với chủ nợ. (He kowtowed repeatedly to apologize to his creditor.)
  • Ơn cứu mạng, tôi xin khấu đầu bách bái cũng không hết. (For saving my life, even if I bowed a hundred times, my gratitude would not be exhausted.)

Advanced Usage

• This idiom is used hyperbolically in modern Vietnamese. It is rarely, if ever, a literal description of physical action. Instead, it powerfully emphasizes the depth of one's remorse, indebtedness, or subservience in a given situation.

Variants and Related Words

• Lạy tạ (v): to bow in thanks or apology.
  • Cụ già lạy tạ ân nhân. (The old man bowed to his benefactor.)
• Khấu đầu (v): to kowtow; to touch one's head to the ground in respect or worship.
  • Người dân khấu đầu trước bàn thờ. (The people kowtowed before the altar.)

Synonyms

• To prostrate oneself: to lie flat on the ground face down, especially in reverence or submission.
• To grovel: to behave obsequiously in order to obtain forgiveness or favor.
• To bow and scrape: to behave in an excessively deferential way.

Related Idioms

• Năm lần bảy lượt: repeatedly, over and over again (often used with pleas or requests, and can complement the action described by ).
  • Năm lần bảy lượt khấu đầu bách bái, cuối cùng họ cũng tha thứ cho anh. (After bowing and scraping over and over, they finally forgave him.)