Definition

1. Verb phrase:
   • To be ungrateful (to someone for something): To fail to show or feel gratitude for kindness or help received from a benefactor; to betray or disregard a favor or debt of gratitude.

Usage

• This phrase is used to describe the act of not repaying or acknowledging a kindness, often seen as a serious moral failing. It implies a betrayal of trust and a lack of reciprocal loyalty.
• It is commonly used in contexts discussing morality, relationships, and social obligations.
• Structure: phụ ơn [ai đó] (to be ungrateful to someone).

Examples

• Verb phrase:
  • Anh ta đã phụ ơn người đã cưu mang mình. (He was ungrateful to the person who took him in.)
  • Đừng bao giờ phụ ơn những người đã giúp đỡ bạn. (Never be ungrateful to those who have helped you.)
  • Hành động đó chứng tỏ cô ấy đã phụ ơn thầy giáo cũ. (That action proved she was ungrateful to her old teacher.)

Advanced Usage

• "phụ ơn bội nghĩa": A stronger, more idiomatic compound meaning "to be utterly ungrateful and treacherous." It emphasizes a profound betrayal of both favor () and righteousness ().
  • Kẻ phụ ơn bội nghĩa sẽ bị mọi người khinh rẻ. (Those who are utterly ungrateful and treacherous will be despised by everyone.)

Variants and Related Words

• Vong ơn (verb): To forget a favor/kindness; to be ungrateful. (Synonymous but slightly less common in modern usage).
• Bội ơn (verb): To betray a favor/kindness. (Often used similarly to ).
• Ân nhân (noun): Benefactor; the person who bestows the favor ().

Synonyms

• Vong ân bội nghĩa: To forget favors and betray righteousness (a four-character idiom with a very similar meaning).
• Bạc tình bạc nghĩa: To be fickle in love and unfaithful in righteousness (often used in romantic contexts, but shares the concept of betrayal).

Related Idioms

• Ăn cháo đá bát: Literally "to eat the porridge and kick the bowl." This idiom vividly describes the act of after receiving help or support.
  • Hắn đúng là loại người ăn cháo đá bát. (He is truly the kind of person who bites the hand that feeds him.)
• Qua cầu rút ván: Literally "to cross the bridge and then pull up the planks." It means to abandon or betray someone after achieving one's goal, closely related to the concept of .
  • Đừng tin hắn, hắn là kẻ hay qua cầu rút ván. (Don't trust him; he's the type who burns bridges after crossing them.)

1. Be ungrateful (to somebody for something)