Definition

1. Noun:
   • The demon of drunkenness; the lure of alcohol: A metaphorical term for alcohol, personifying it as an evil spirit or demon that tempts and controls a person, leading to drunkenness and addiction.
   • Alcohol, booze (colloquial): Used informally to refer to alcoholic drinks themselves, with a connotation of their addictive and destructive nature.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Anh ta bị con ma men ám ảnh, ngày nào cũng phải uống. (He is haunted by the demon of drink and has to drink every day.)
  • Cảnh sát cảnh báo về những tai nạn do ma men gây ra. (Police warn about accidents caused by alcohol.)
  • Hãy tránh xa ma men nếu bạn muốn có một sức khỏe tốt. (Stay away from the bottle if you want good health.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is almost always used in a negative, cautionary context to highlight the dangers and addictive power of alcohol. It is common in educational or moralizing discourse about substance abuse.

Variants and Related Words

• Say rượu / Say xỉn (v): to be drunk, intoxicated.

  • Ông ấy say rượu và không thể lái xe. (He was drunk and could not drive.)

• Nghiện rượu (v/n): to be addicted to alcohol; alcoholism.

  • Căn bệnh nghiện rượu đã phá hủy cuộc đời anh ấy. (The disease of alcoholism ruined his life.)

Synonyms

• Alcohol / Booze: The substance itself.
• Demon drink: A similar English metaphorical phrase.
• The bottle: A metonym for alcohol and its addiction.

Related Idioms

• Bạn với ma men: To be friends with the drink demon; to be a habitual drinker.

  • Từ ngày thất nghiệp, anh ấy đã trở thành bạn với ma men. (Since becoming unemployed, he has become best friends with the bottle.)

• Ma men quyến rũ: The lure/temptation of alcohol.

  • Anh ấy không thể cưỡng lại sự quyến rũ của ma men. (He could not resist the lure of the drink.)

noun

1. the demon of drunkeness