nối dây
Definition
- Verb phrase:
- To splice a string/rope: The literal action of joining two separate ends of a string, rope, wire, or cable together to form one continuous length.
- To remarry (figurative, archaic): A classical, literary metaphor meaning to take a subsequent spouse, likening it to splicing a broken string (e.g., of a musical instrument). This usage is now rare in modern everyday language.
Usage Examples
- Literal meaning:
- Anh thợ điện đang nối dây bị đứt. (The electrician is splicing the broken wire.)
- Cô ấy nối dây thừng lại để buộc đồ. (She spliced the rope back together to tie the items.)
- Figurative meaning (archaic):
- Sau khi vợ mất, ông ấy quyết định nối dây. (After his wife passed away, he decided to remarry.)
Advanced Usage
- The figurative usage originates from classical literature and Confucian-influenced texts, where the "string" often symbolized the vital line of a family or the harmony of a household. It specifically implied a man taking a second wife after the death or departure of the first.
Variants and Related Words
- Nối (v): to connect, to join, to continue.
- Hãy nối hai đoạn đường ống này. (Please connect these two pipe sections.)
- Nối dõi (v): to continue the family line.
- Anh ấy sinh con trai để nối dõi tông đường. (He had a son to continue the family line.)
- Nối ngôi (v): to succeed to the throne.
- Hoàng tử sẽ nối ngôi vua cha. (The prince will succeed his father's throne.)
Synonyms
- Literal: to splice, to join wires, to connect cables.
- Figurative (archaic): to remarry, to take a new spouse.
Related Idioms
- Nối dây tơ hồng: Refers to the mythical "red thread of fate" connected by the Old Man of the Moon (Ông Tơ Bà Nguyệt). It means to act as a matchmaker or to form a marital bond.
- Bà ấy thích nối dây tơ hồng cho mọi người. (She likes to play matchmaker for everyone.)