Definition

1. Verb:
   • To dissuade: To advise someone against a particular action or course of action, attempting to persuade them not to do it.
   • To admonish, to counsel against: To give earnest advice aimed at preventing someone from making a mistake or doing something unwise.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Tôi đã cố gắng khuyên can anh ấy đừng đầu tư vào dự án mạo hiểm đó. (I tried to dissuade him from investing in that risky project.)
  • Cô giáo đã khuyên can học sinh không nên bỏ học giữa chừng. (The teacher admonished the student not to drop out of school.)
  • Bạn bè khuyên can tôi, nhưng tôi vẫn quyết định làm theo ý mình. (My friends counseled me against it, but I still decided to follow my own mind.)

Advanced Usage

• "Khuyên can ai đó làm gì": To dissuade someone from doing something.
  • Mẹ tôi khuyên can tôi đi du lịch một mình vì lo lắng. (My mother dissuaded me from traveling alone out of concern.)
• "Khuyên can mãi" / "Khuyên can hoài": To dissuade repeatedly or persistently.
  • Tôi khuyên can mãi mà nó chẳng nghe. (I dissuaded him repeatedly, but he didn't listen.)

Variants and Related Words

• Khuyên (verb): To advise, to counsel (a more general term for giving advice, which can be positive or negative).
  • Bác sĩ khuyên tôi nên nghỉ ngơi. (The doctor advised me to rest.)
• Can (verb): To prevent, to stop (often used in compounds like "can ngăn").
  • Không ai can nổi hành động liều lĩnh của anh ta. (No one could stop his reckless action.)
• Can ngăn (verb): To prevent, to hinder (emphasizes the act of stopping or preventing).
  • Cảnh sát đã can ngăn cuộc ẩu đả. (The police prevented the brawl.)
• Khuyến cáo (verb): To recommend, to advise (often with official or formal weight, can imply warning).
  • Cơ quan y tế khuyến cáo người dân tiêm phòng. (The health agency recommends that people get vaccinated.)

Synonyms

• Ngăn cản: To prevent, to obstruct.
• Khuyên nhủ: To exhort, to advise earnestly (can be for or against an action).
• Can gián: To remonstrate, to advise against (formal, often used in historical or serious contexts).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

Note: As a single verb, "khuyên can" does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Its meaning is typically expressed through the structure "khuyên can + [someone] + (đừng/không nên) + [action]".

Related Idioms

• "Khuyên can như nước đổ đầu vịt": To dissuade in vain (literally: "to dissuade like water poured on a duck's head" – meaning the advice has no effect, like water rolling off a duck's back).
  • Tôi khuyên can nó như nước đổ đầu vịt; nó nhất quyết không nghe. (I dissuaded him in vain; he stubbornly refused to listen.)

verb

1. to dissuade