Definition

Verb: * To encounter misfortune; to fall into calamity/danger; to be in distress. This verb describes the state of experiencing or falling into an accident, disaster, or a very difficult and dangerous situation. It often implies an unexpected or unfortunate event.

Usage

• The word "lâm nạn" is used to describe a person or group of people who have met with serious trouble or danger.
• It is a formal and literary term, commonly found in written language, news reports, or formal speech.
• It often collocates with phrases indicating the location or cause of the misfortune.

Examples

• (The ship was in distress in the open sea.)
• (The passengers in distress were rescued promptly.)
• (The climbing expedition encountered misfortune due to sudden bad weather.)

Advanced Usage

• "người lâm nạn" / "nạn nhân": victim; person in distress.
  • Các người lâm nạn trong vụ hỏa hoạn đã được đưa đến bệnh viện. (The victims of the fire were taken to the hospital.)
• "vùng lâm nạn": disaster area; area in distress.
  • Lực lượng cứu hộ đang tìm cách tiếp cận vùng lâm nạn. (Rescue forces are trying to access the disaster area.)

Variants and Related Words

• Gặp nạn (verb): A more common and colloquial synonym meaning "to meet with an accident/misfortune."
  • Ông ấy gặp nạn trên đường đi làm. (He had an accident on his way to work.)
• Tai nạn (noun): Accident, disaster.
  • vụ tai nạn giao thông (a traffic accident)
• Hoạn nạn (noun): Calamity, tribulation (often used in a broader, sometimes metaphorical sense).
  • giúp đỡ nhau lúc hoạn nạn (to help each other in times of tribulation)

Synonyms

• Gặp hoạn nạn: To encounter calamity.
• Gặp tai ương: To meet with disaster.
• Lâm nguy: To be in peril/danger (focuses more on the state of danger than the event of encountering it).

Related Idioms/Phrases

• "Hoạn nạn mới biết bạn hiền": A proverb meaning "Adversity reveals true friends" or "A friend in need is a friend indeed." This idiom uses "hoạn nạn", a related noun form.
• "Cứu người lâm nạn": To rescue someone in distress. This is a common phrase highlighting the action taken towards those who "lâm nạn".
  • Nhiệm vụ của đội cứu hộ là cứu người lâm nạn. (The rescue team's mission is to rescue people in distress.)

verb

1. to fall into calamity