Definition

Noun: - A young concubine: A woman, typically young, who is kept as a secondary wife or mistress, especially by a wealthy or powerful man in historical contexts. The term carries an archaic or literary tone and implies a subordinate, often servile, status within a household. - A maidservant who shares her master's bed: Specifically refers to a female servant whose duties included sexual service to the master, highlighting a position combining domestic service and concubinage.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Trong cung điện xưa, mỗi vị quan có thể có nhiều nàng hầu. (In the old palace, each mandarin could have many young concubines.)
  • Câu chuyện kể về một nàng hầu bị lãng quên trong hậu cung. (The story tells of a forgotten concubine in the royal harem.)
  • Bà buộc phải làm nàng hầu cho một phú ông để trả nợ cho gia đình. (She was forced to become a concubine for a rich man to pay her family's debt.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "nàng hầu" is primarily found in historical narratives, literature, or discussions of feudal society. It is not used in modern contexts to describe contemporary relationships.
• It often appears in phrases describing the plight or passive role of women in patriarchal systems, e.g., (the lot/fate of a concubine).

Variants and Related Words

• Thiếp (n): concubine. A more general term for a secondary wife.
  • Ông ta lấy thêm một người thiếp. (He took an additional concubine.)
• Hầu gái (n): maidservant, chambermaid. Emphasizes the domestic service role without the explicit connotation of sexual service.
  • Cô hầu gái đang dọn dẹp phòng. (The maidservant is cleaning the room.)
• Cung tần (n): palace concubine. Specifically refers to concubines in a royal court.
  • Đời sống của các cung tần đầy những đấu đá. (The life of palace concubines was full of rivalry.)

Synonyms

• Concubine: A woman who lives with a man but has lower status than his wife or wives.
• Mistress: A woman having an ongoing sexual relationship with a man, especially one who is financially supported by him.
• Secondary wife: A wife of lower legal or social status.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Kiếp nàng hầu: The fate/life of a concubine. Used to describe a life of subservience and lack of autonomy.
  • Bà ấy than thở về kiếp nàng hầu của mình thời trẻ. (She lamented her lot as a concubine in her youth.)
• Làm nàng hầu: To serve/be made a concubine.
  • Số phận bắt cô ấy phải làm nàng hầu. (Fate forced her to become a concubine.)

noun

1. young concubine