Definition

Verb: - To be imprisoned; to serve a prison sentence: The phrase "ngồi tù" means to be incarcerated, to be held in jail as a punishment for a crime. It describes the state of being a prisoner.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Anh ta phải ngồi tù mười năm vì tội cướp. (He had to go to prison for ten years for robbery.)
  • Cựu giám đốc đang ngồi tù vì tham nhũng. (The former director is in jail for corruption.)
  • Ngồi tù khiến con người ta thay đổi. (Being imprisoned changes a person.)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase is neutral and factual, commonly used in both formal (legal, news) and informal contexts to state that someone is serving time.
• It can be used in various tenses to indicate past, present, or future imprisonment.

Variants and Related Words

• Ở tù (v): A very close synonym, also meaning "to be in prison."
  • Ông ấy đã ở tù suốt hai thập kỷ. (He was in prison for two decades.)
• Bị bỏ tù / Bị tống giam (v): To be put in jail; to be imprisoned (emphasizing the action of being sent to prison).
  • Bị cáo bị bỏ tù ngay sau phiên tòa. (The defendant was put in jail right after the trial.)
• Đi tù (v, informal): To go to prison.
  • Nó sợ phải đi tù. (He's afraid of having to go to prison.)

Synonyms

• To be incarcerated: To be confined in a prison or jail.
• To serve time: To spend a period in prison as punishment.
• To be behind bars: An idiomatic expression meaning to be in prison.

Related Idioms

• Ngồi tù chung thân: To be sentenced to life imprisonment.
  • Kẻ giết người bị kết án ngồi tù chung thân. (The murderer was sentenced to life in prison.)
• Ra tù vào tù: To be in and out of prison repeatedly; to have a recurrent prison history.
  • Hắn có một quá khứ ra tù vào tù. (He has a history of being in and out of prison.)

verb

1. to go to prison; to jail