mục đồng
Definition
- Noun:
- Herdsman, herder: A person, typically a child or youth, who tends cattle, buffalo, or other livestock.
- Young shepherd/pastoralist: Specifically refers to a young person, often a child, working in a pastoral role, historically common in rural, agricultural societies.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Trong bức tranh, một mục đồng đang thổi sáo trên lưng trâu. (In the painting, a herdsman is playing a flute on the back of a buffalo.)
- Câu chuyện cổ tích thường có hình ảnh các mục đồng chăn dê trên đồi. (Folk tales often feature images of young shepherds herding goats on the hills.)
- Thuở nhỏ, ông nội tôi từng là một mục đồng. (In his childhood, my grandfather was once a herder.)
Advanced Usage
- The term mục đồng carries a strong historical and literary connotation, often evoking idyllic, pastoral scenes from the past or from folklore. It is less commonly used in modern contexts to describe contemporary livestock workers.
- It can be used metaphorically in literary or religious contexts to imply innocence, simplicity, or a connection to nature.
Variants and Related Words
- Người chăn gia súc (n): A more general, modern term for a livestock herder or rancher.
- Kẻ chăn cừu (n): Shepherd (specifically for sheep).
- Mục tử (n): Pastor, shepherd; often used in a religious or spiritual context (e.g., a priest as a shepherd of his congregation).
Synonyms
- Herdsboy/Herdsgirl: Emphasizes the youth of the person.
- Drover: A person who drives cattle or sheep.
- Pastoralist: A person involved in raising livestock.
Related Phrases
- Chăn trâu cắt cỏ: A common phrase meaning "to herd buffalo and cut grass," describing traditional rural work, often done by children (mục đồng).
Related Idioms
- While there is no direct idiom with mục đồng as the core word, the image of the mục đồng is central to many Vietnamese folk sayings and proverbs about rural life, simplicity, and childhood.
noun
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herds-man
