Definition

1. Noun:
   • The tropics / tropical zone: The region of the Earth surrounding the equator, bounded by the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the south, characterized by a hot climate.
   • Tropical (as an adjective): Of, relating to, or characteristic of the tropics. (Note: In Vietnamese, "nhiệt đới" is primarily a noun but is commonly used attributively like an adjective before other nouns).

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Việt Nam nằm trong vùng nhiệt đới. (Vietnam is located in the tropics.)
  • Khí hậu nhiệt đới thường nóng và ẩm. (Tropical climate is usually hot and humid.)
  • Rừng nhiệt đới có hệ sinh thái rất phong phú. (Tropical forests have very rich ecosystems.)

Advanced Usage

• "Vùng nhiệt đới": The tropical region/zone. This phrase explicitly specifies the geographical area.

  • Động vật ở vùng nhiệt đới rất đa dạng. (Animals in the tropical region are very diverse.)

• Used in scientific and geographical contexts to describe phenomena, diseases, or ecology specific to this zone, e.g., bệnh nhiệt đới (tropical disease), cơn bão nhiệt đới (tropical storm).

Variants and Related Words

• Cận nhiệt đới (adj/n): Subtropical. Refers to the regions just outside the tropics.

  • Khí hậu cận nhiệt đới ôn hòa hơn. (Subtropical climate is more temperate.)

• Ôn đới (adj/n): Temperate zone. The climatic zone between the tropics and the polar circles.

• Hàn đới (adj/n): Frigid zone. The polar climatic zone.

Synonyms

• The tropics: The hot regions near the equator.
• Torrid zone: A more technical or literary term for the tropics.

Related Terms

• Xích đạo: Equator. The imaginary line at 0° latitude that divides the Earth into northern and southern hemispheres and is the center of the tropical zone.
• Chí tuyến: Tropic (specifically, Tropic of Cancer or Tropic of Capricorn). The lines that mark the northern and southern boundaries of the tropics.

1. Tropic (torrid) zone