Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Cleared of all charges; exonerated; acquitted: Describes a person who has been officially declared not guilty of a crime or wrongdoing they were accused of. It emphasizes the result of being freed from blame or legal responsibility.
   • Cleansed of sin; absolved: In a religious or moral context, it describes a state of being purified from sin or moral fault.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Sau phiên tòa, bị cáo đã được tuyên bố sạch tội. (After the trial, the defendant was declared acquitted.)
  • Bằng chứng mới chứng minh anh ta sạch tội. (New evidence proved him innocent.)
  • Theo tín ngưỡng, lễ rửa tội giúp con người sạch tội nguyên tổ. (According to belief, baptism cleanses one of original sin.)

Advanced Usage

• "được/trở nên sạch tội": to be/become exonerated; to be absolved.
  • Nhờ luật sư giỏi, ông ấy đã được sạch tội. (Thanks to a good lawyer, he was exonerated.)
• "tuyên bố ai đó sạch tội": to declare someone not guilty; to acquit someone.
  • Tòa án đã tuyên bố bị cáo sạch tội. (The court acquitted the defendant.)

Variants and Related Words

• Sạch (adj): clean. This is the root adjective meaning "clean," which extends metaphorically to "clean" of fault or guilt.
• Tội (n): sin; crime; fault. This is the noun for the wrongdoing one is cleansed of.
• Thanh tẩy (v): to purify; to cleanse. A more formal verb for cleansing, often used in spiritual contexts.
• Giải oan (v): to clear someone's name; to redress a wrong. Focuses on correcting a false accusation.

Synonyms

• Vô tội (adj): innocent. A more general state of being not guilty.
• Được tha bổng (v phrase): to be acquitted. A legal term for being found not guilty.
• Được minh oan (v phrase): to be vindicated; to have one's name cleared. Emphasizes the proof of innocence after being wrongly accused.

Related Phrases

• Tẩy oan (v): to clear someone's name; to exonerate. Similar to "giải oan."
  • Gia đình nỗ lực tẩy oan cho người con bị hàm oan. (The family strives to clear the name of their wrongly accused son.)

Related Idioms

• Oan thì phải giải, tội thì phải đền: A wrong must be righted, a crime must be atoned for. This proverb contrasts the clearing of false accusations ("giải oan") with the punishment for actual guilt, which is the opposite of being "sạch tội."
• Trắng án (v/n): to be acquitted; an acquittal. A direct legal synonym often used in court contexts.
  • Bị cáo mong muốn được trắng án. (The defendant hopes to be acquitted.)

1. Be cleaned of all faults