nghĩa mẫu
Definition
- Noun:
- Stepmother: A woman who is married to one's father but is not one's biological mother.
- Foster mother / Adoptive mother: A woman who raises and cares for a child as her own, though she is not the child's biological mother.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Cô ấy là nghĩa mẫu của tôi. (She is my stepmother.)
- Sau khi mẹ ruột mất, tôi sống với nghĩa mẫu. (After my biological mother died, I lived with my foster mother.)
- Nghĩa mẫu đối xử với tôi rất tốt. (My adoptive mother treats me very well.)
Advanced Usage
- The term "nghĩa mẫu" is formal and emphasizes the caring, dutiful relationship ("nghĩa" meaning righteousness, duty, or bond) rather than the biological one. It is less common in everyday speech than "mẹ kế" (stepmother) or "mẹ nuôi" (foster mother).
Variants and Related Words
- Mẹ kế (n): Stepmother. This term is neutral or can sometimes carry a negative connotation.
- Mẹ nuôi (n): Foster mother, adoptive mother.
- Mẹ đẻ / Mẹ ruột (n): Biological mother.
Synonyms
- Stepmother.
- Foster mother.
- Adoptive mother.
Related Idioms
- While there is no direct idiom with "nghĩa mẫu," the concept relates to proverbs about care and upbringing, such as:
- Công cha như núi Thái Sơn, nghĩa mẹ như nước trong nguồn chảy ra. (A father's merit is as great as Mount Tai, a mother's love is like water flowing from its source.) — Here, "mẹ" can encompass both biological and nurturing mothers.