Definition

1. Noun:
   • Reason; rationale; cause: The principle, basis, or logical justification used to explain an event, action, or feeling. It refers to the "why" behind something.
   • Principle; natural law; truth: An accepted truth, moral principle, or fundamental law governing nature or human affairs (often found in compound words).
   • (Archaic) Secondary wife; concubine: In traditional society, a term for a second-rank wife or a concubine, subordinate to the principal wife.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Reason):
  • Anh ấy từ chối vì nhiều lẽ. (He refused for many reasons.)
  • Tôi hiểu lẽ tại sao cô ấy buồn. (I understand the reason why she is sad.)
• Noun (Principle):
  • Đó là lẽ thường tình. (That is the way of the world / a common principle.)
• Noun (Archaic - Secondary Wife):
  • Trong xã hội phong kiến, "vợ lẽ" có địa vị thấp. (In feudal society, a secondary wife had a low status.)

Advanced Usage

• Often used in formal, philosophical, or explanatory contexts to denote logic, propriety, or inherent truth.
• "Lẽ ra": An adverb phrase meaning "ought to have," "should have," or "in principle."
  • Lẽ ra anh phải đến sớm hơn. (In principle / You should have arrived earlier.)
• "Lẽ phải": A noun phrase meaning "what is right," "justice," or "moral reason."
  • Phải bảo vệ lẽ phải. (One must defend what is right.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lẽ thường (n): Common sense; the usual way of things.
  • Theo lẽ thường, việc đó không thể chấp nhận. (According to common sense, that is unacceptable.)
• Lẽ tự nhiên (n): The natural order; a matter of course.
  • Mọi vật đều tuân theo lẽ tự nhiên. (Everything follows the natural order.)
• Vợ lẽ (n, archaic): Secondary wife; concubine.

Synonyms

• Reason: cause, motive, grounds.
• Principle: truth, doctrine, axiom.
• (For "vợ lẽ"): concubine, secondary spouse.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Có lẽ: Perhaps; maybe (literally "having reason").
  • Có lẽ trời sẽ mưa. (Perhaps it will rain.)
• Khôn chẳng qua lẽ, khoẻ chẳng qua lời: (Proverb) Wisdom cannot surpass reason, strength cannot surpass words (emphasizing the power of reason and dialogue).
• Biết điều, hiểu lẽ: To be reasonable and understanding of propriety.
• Chết trẻ còn hơn lấy lẽ: (Old proverb) It's better to die young than to become a secondary wife (highlighting the low status of a concubine in the past).

noun

1. reason