Definition

1. Idiomatic Phrase (Thành ngữ):
   • To have experienced something, to have gone through something: The phrase "qua cầu" literally means "to cross a bridge." Figuratively, it describes someone who has personally experienced a difficult situation, hardship, or a significant life event. It emphasizes that true understanding comes only from direct, lived experience.

Usage Examples

• Idiomatic Phrase:
  • Đoạn trường ai có qua cầu mới hay. (Only those who have gone through suffering truly understand it.)
  • Chuyện đó phải tự mình trải nghiệm, qua cầu mới biết. (You have to experience that yourself; you only know once you've gone through it.)
  • Ông ấy là người đã qua cầu rồi, nên lời khuyên rất đáng giá. (He is a man of experience, so his advice is very valuable.)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase is almost exclusively used in its figurative sense to denote having survived or endured a challenging experience. It is rarely used to describe the literal act of crossing a bridge in modern Vietnamese.
• It often carries a tone of earned wisdom, resilience, or the hard-won knowledge that comes from adversity.

Variants and Related Words

• Trải qua (verb): to experience, to go through.
  • Anh ấy đã trải qua nhiều khó khăn. (He has gone through many difficulties.)
• Từng trải (adjective): experienced, seasoned.
  • Một nhà lãnh đạo từng trải. (An experienced leader.)
• Kinh qua (verb): to undergo, to pass through (often formal).
  • Kinh qua bao thăng trầm. (To have undergone so many ups and downs.)

Synonyms

• Có kinh nghiệm: to have experience.
• Đã nếm trải: to have tasted/experienced (hardship).
• Đã đi qua: to have passed through.

Related Idioms

• "Ăn cơm mới, nói chuyện cũ": Literally "Eat new rice, talk about old stories." Similar in meaning, implying that only those who were present/experienced an event can truly discuss it.
• "Ở trong chăn mới biết chăn có rận": Literally "Only by being inside the blanket do you know it has lice." Meaning you must be in a situation to understand its hidden problems.

1. (nghĩa bóng) Experiences, go through
   • "Đoạn trường ai có qua cầu mới hay" (Nguyễn Du)
     Suffering is only known to those who have gone through it