nghìn dặm
Definition
Noun Phrase:
- A thousand miles: A literal measure of great distance, equivalent to one thousand dặm (a traditional Vietnamese unit of length, approximately 0.5 km or 0.31 miles).
- Very far away / A great distance: Used figuratively to describe something being extremely distant, remote, or far removed, either in physical space or metaphorically.
Adjectival Phrase:
- Distant / Far-flung: Describing a place, journey, or separation that spans a vast expanse.
Usage Examples
Noun Phrase:
- Tình bạn vượt qua nghìn dặm xa cách. (A friendship that overcomes a separation of a thousand miles.)
- Hành trình nghìn dặm bắt đầu từ một bước chân. (A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.)
Adjectival Phrase:
- Anh ấy đến từ một vùng đất nghìn dặm. (He comes from a far-flung land.)
- Họ giữ liên lạc dù cách nhau nghìn dặm. (They keep in touch despite being a thousand miles apart.)
Advanced Usage
- Often used in literary, poetic, or formal contexts to evoke a sense of epic scale, longing, or significant effort related to distance.
- Can imply not just physical distance, but also emotional or ideological separation.
- Hiểu lầm giữa họ như một khoảng cách nghìn dặm. (The misunderstanding between them was like a distance of a thousand miles.)
Variants and Related Words
- Ngàn dặm: An alternative, equally common form with identical meaning.
- Tiễn người đi ngàn dặm. (To see someone off on a journey of a thousand miles.)
Synonyms
- A great distance: A vast span.
- Faraway: Remote, distant.
- Long haul: A very long journey (idiomatic).
Related Idioms and Phrases
Nghìn dặm xa xôi / Ngàn dặm xa xôi: Far away, distant and remote.
- Quê hương giờ đã nghìn dặm xa xôi. (My homeland is now a thousand miles away.)
Tìm nhau nghìn dặm: To seek each other across a great distance; implies destined connection or great effort to unite.
- Có duyên thì sẽ tìm nhau nghìn dặm. (If fate wills it, you will find each other across a thousand miles.)