Definition

1. Verb:
   • To abstain / to refrain: To deliberately avoid or stay away from certain foods, drinks, or activities, typically for health, recovery, or traditional reasons.
   • To observe dietary restrictions: To follow a specific regimen that prohibits particular items, often during a period of illness, convalescence, or special cultural practices.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Sau phẫu thuật, bệnh nhân phải kiêng cữ đồ cay. (After surgery, the patient must abstain from spicy food.)
  • Theo tục lệ cũ, phụ nữ phải kiêng cữ sau khi sinh. (According to old customs, a woman must observe dietary restrictions after childbirth.)
  • Anh ấy đang kiêng cữ rượu bia để bảo vệ sức khỏe. (He is refraining from alcohol to protect his health.)

Advanced Usage

• "kiêng cữ nghiêm ngặt": to strictly abstain.

  • Người bị bệnh gút cần kiêng cữ nghiêm ngặt hải sản. (People with gout need to strictly abstain from seafood.)

• "thời gian kiêng cữ": the period of abstinence/convalescence.

  • Thời gian kiêng cữ thường kéo dài một tháng. (The period of convalescence usually lasts one month.)

Variants and Related Words

• Kiêng khem (v): A close synonym, often used interchangeably to mean to diet or abstain, sometimes with a nuance of enduring the hardship of restriction.

  • Cô ấy kiêng khem rất vất vả để giảm cân. (She dieted very strenuously to lose weight.)

• Kiêng (v): The root verb, meaning to avoid or abstain from something. "Kiêng cữ" is a more specific and emphatic compound.

  • Tôi kiêng đường. (I avoid sugar.)

Synonyms

• Abstain: To refrain deliberately from an action or substance.
• Refrain: To stop oneself from doing something.
• Avoid: To keep away from.
• Observe restrictions: To follow specific prohibitive rules.

Related Idioms

• Kiêng cữ đủ thứ: To abstain from all sorts of things (implying a very restrictive regimen).

  • Ông ốm nặng nên phải kiêng cữ đủ thứ. (He is seriously ill, so he has to abstain from all sorts of things.)

• Kiêng như kiêng kỵ: To abstain as if avoiding a taboo (emphasizing strict, almost superstitious avoidance).

  • Anh ta kiêng rượu như kiêng kỵ. (He abstains from alcohol as if it were a taboo.)

1. Abstain from unsuitable foods, keep a diet
   • Đẻ xong theo tục lệ cũ phải kiêng cữ
     Accoding to old customs, a woman must abstain from unsuitable foods after childbirth