mấy đời
Definition
- Adverbial phrase:
- Ever (in rhetorical questions): Used in rhetorical questions to express strong negation, meaning "never" or "not at all." It emphasizes that something is so unlikely or impossible that it has never happened and never will.
- Since when: Used to challenge a statement or assumption, questioning the very possibility or historical occurrence of something.
Usage Examples
- Adverbial phrase:
- Mấy đời bánh đúc có xương? (Since when does steamed rice cake have bones in it? / That's utterly impossible.)
- Mấy đời nó chịu nghe lời ai. (He never listens to anyone.)
- Mấy đời có chuyện tốt đẹp như vậy? (When has there ever been something that good?)
Advanced Usage
- The phrase is almost exclusively used in rhetorical, proverbial, or highly emphatic colloquial contexts to convey skepticism, impossibility, or a proverbial truth. It is not used for literal time measurement.
Variants and Related Words
- Đời nào: A synonymous phrase with the same function.
- Đời nào nó chịu thua! (He would never admit defeat!)
Synonyms
- Never: Not at any time.
- Since when: Used to express doubt or challenge.
- Not in a million years: Emphasizing impossibility.
Related Idioms
- Mấy đời bánh đúc có xương: A classic Vietnamese proverb using this phrase. It means "That's impossible" or "It doesn't make sense," akin to "When pigs fly." It refers to something that can never happen, just as a soft rice cake could never contain a bone.