Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Decayed, rotten, or thoroughly decomposed: Describes organic material, especially wood, that has deteriorated to the point of being hollowed out, crumbling, and losing its structural integrity due to prolonged rot or insect damage.
   • Morally or institutionally corrupt: Used figuratively to describe a system, organization, or regime that is thoroughly corrupt, degenerate, and collapsing from within.

Usage Examples

• Adjective (Literal):

  • Súc gỗ ruỗng nát. (A decayed log.)
  • Thân cây bị mối ăn ruỗng nát. (The tree trunk was eaten hollow and rotten by termites.)

• Adjective (Figurative):

  • Một chế độ ruỗng nát. (A rotten/corrupt regime.)
  • Bộ máy đó đã trở nên ruỗng nát. (That apparatus has become thoroughly corrupt.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "ruỗng nát" often implies a state beyond simple surface decay, suggesting an advanced, internal, and pervasive breakdown. It carries a stronger connotation of hollowness and structural failure than the more general word "hỏng" (broken) or "thối" (rotten).

Variants and Related Words

• Mục nát (adj): rotten, decayed (often used interchangeably with "ruỗng nát," though "mục nát" can be slightly more general).
• Ruỗng (adj): hollowed out, decayed from within (often the core component of "ruỗng nát").
• Thối rữa (adj): putrid, rotting (emphasizes the process of decomposition and foulness).

Synonyms

• Decayed: having rotted.
• Rotten: decomposed and foul.
• Corrupt: morally debased (figurative).
• Degenerate: having declined to a lower state.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• While "ruỗng nát" itself is not commonly part of a fixed idiom, it is a potent descriptive phrase often used in political or social commentary to denote profound failure, e.g., (a rotten society).

1. Decayed
   • Súc gỗ ruỗng nát
     A decayed log