Definition

1. Noun:

   • A small, natural or man-made water channel, typically found in a river delta or agricultural area, used for irrigation, drainage, or local transport by small boats.

2. Verb:

   • To make a long, straight, and usually shallow cut or slit on a surface using a sharp object.
   • (Of certain fish, especially climbing perch) To move out of the water or navigate through shallow water, often against the current or onto land, especially after rain.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • Thuyền nhỏ đi lại trong rạch. (Small boats travel in the canal.)
  • Nước từ rạch chảy vào đồng ruộng. (Water from the ditch flows into the fields.)

• Verb:

  • Cô ấy rạch phong bì bằng kéo. (She slit the envelope with scissors.)
  • Sau cơn mưa, cá rô rạch lên bờ. (After the rain, climbing perch move onto the bank.)

Advanced Usage

• "rạch ròi": (Adjective) Clear, distinct, unambiguous. This is a common figurative use derived from the idea of a clean, clear cut.
  • Cần có sự phân biệt rạch ròi giữa hai khái niệm. (A clear distinction between the two concepts is needed.)

Variants and Related Words

• Kênh rạch (n): A general term for canals and small waterways; a network of waterways.

  • Hệ thống kênh rạch chằng chịt ở đồng bằng sông Cửu Long. (The intricate network of canals in the Mekong Delta.)

• Đường rạch (n): A scratch, a score, a striation (the mark left by the verb action).

  • Chiếc bàn có nhiều đường rạch. (The table has many scratches.)

Synonyms

• Noun: Ditch, canal, waterway, arroyo.
• Verb: To slit, to score, to scratch, to incise.

Related Idioms

• Rạch đôi sơn hà: (Literary) To split the country in two; to divide territory.
  • Hiệp ước đó rạch đôi sơn hà. (That treaty divided the land in two.)

noun

1. Small irrigation canal; irrigation ditch; arrogo

verb

1. to leap from the water to slit; to slash
   • rạch cái hộp giấy
     to slit a paper box to divide; to split
   • rạch đôi sơn hà
     to divide the land in halves