Definition

1. Verb:
   • To decline, to fall into decadence, to perish: "suy vong" describes the process of a nation, dynasty, institution, or ideology weakening, deteriorating, and moving towards collapse or extinction. It implies a state of irreversible decay and ruin.
   • To wane, to be on the verge of extinction: It can also indicate a state of near disappearance or termination.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Đế chế La Mã cuối cùng đã suy vong. (The Roman Empire eventually declined and fell.)
  • Nhiều triều đại phong kiến suy vong do tham nhũng và nội chiến. (Many feudal dynasties perished due to corruption and civil war.)
  • Nền văn minh cổ đại đó đã suy vong từ nhiều thế kỷ trước. (That ancient civilization fell into decadence many centuries ago.)

Advanced Usage

• "sự suy vong" (noun): The state or process of decline and fall.
  • Sự suy vong của một đế chế thường là một quá trình kéo dài. (The decline and fall of an empire is often a prolonged process.)
• "con đường suy vong": The path to ruin.
  • Tham nhũng là con đường dẫn đến suy vong. (Corruption is the path leading to ruin.)

Variants and Related Words

• Suy tàn (verb): To decline, to wane. Often used interchangeably with "suy vong," though "suy tàn" can sometimes imply a slower, more natural fading.
• Diệt vong (verb): To be destroyed, to become extinct. Emphasizes the final result of complete annihilation more than the process of decline.
• Suy đồi (verb): To degenerate, to become depraved. Often refers to moral or cultural decay.

Synonyms

• Decline: To decrease in strength, power, or quality.
• Perish: To suffer death, typically in a violent, sudden, or untimely way; to be destroyed.
• Fall into decadence: To enter a state of low moral standards and cultural decline.

Related Phrases

• Dẫn đến suy vong: To lead to ruin/decline.
  • Những chính sách sai lầm đó dẫn đến suy vong. (Those misguided policies led to ruin.)
• Trên bờ vực suy vong: On the brink of collapse/ruin.
  • Tổ chức đó đang trên bờ vực suy vong. (That organization is on the brink of collapse.)

Related Idioms

• "Suy bại vong gia" (a classical Sino-Vietnamese idiom): This four-character idiom describes the state of a family or nation falling into decline and ruin. It is a more literary synonym for "suy vong."
  • Lịch sử ghi lại nhiều triều đại rơi vào cảnh suy bại vong gia. (History records many dynasties falling into a state of decline and ruin.)

1. Decline, fall into decadence