Definition

1. Noun:
   • Debt to the nation: A profound moral and patriotic obligation that a citizen owes to their country, often incurred through the benefits of living under its protection and enjoying its resources. It implies a duty to contribute to or sacrifice for the nation's well-being, prosperity, or defense in return.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Anh ấy luôn tâm niệm phải đền đáp nợ nước. (He always holds the belief that he must repay his debt to the nation.)
  • Là thanh niên, chúng ta phải ý thức về nợ nước. (As young people, we must be aware of our debt to the nation.)
  • Họ hy sinh thân mình để trả nợ nước. (They sacrificed themselves to repay their debt to the nation.)

Advanced Usage

• "đền nợ nước" / "trả nợ nước": To repay the debt to the nation; to fulfill one's patriotic duty, often through service or sacrifice.
  • Bao thế hệ đã lên đường chiến đấu để đền nợ nước. (Many generations took up arms to fight in order to repay the debt to the nation.)

Variants and Related Words

• Nợ (n): Debt (in a general, often financial sense).
  • nợ tiền (monetary debt)
• Nghĩa vụ (n): Duty, obligation (a broader, more legal/formal term).
  • nghĩa vụ quân sự (military service obligation)

Synonyms

• Nghĩa vụ công dân: Civic duty.
• Bổn phận với Tổ quốc: Duty towards the Fatherland.
• Trách nhiệm với đất nước: Responsibility to the country.

Related Idioms

• "Nợ nước, thù nhà": A traditional phrase meaning "Debt to the nation, enmity to the family." It describes a state of having paramount obligations: to repay the country and to avenge one's family, often used in historical or literary contexts to describe a compelling dual duty.
  • Trong hoàn cảnh lúc bấy giờ, ông ấy mang trong mình mối nợ nước, thù nhà. (In the circumstances of that time, he carried within him the debt to the nation and the enmity to the family.)

1. Duty (obligation toward one's country