sát thân
Definition
Adjective:
- Self-sacrificing / Sacrificing one's own life: Describes the act of giving up or being willing to give up one's own life for a cause, principle, or another person. It implies ultimate personal sacrifice.
Verb (phrase):
- To sacrifice oneself / To give one's life: The act of dying or being killed for a specific purpose, often a noble or righteous one.
Usage Examples
Adjective:
- Lòng trung thành sát thân của người lính. (The soldier's self-sacrificing loyalty.)
- Đó là một hành động sát thân. (That was a self-sacrificing act.)
Verb (phrase):
- Anh ấy sẵn sàng sát thân vì độc lập dân tộc. (He is ready to sacrifice himself for national independence.)
- Câu chuyện về những người sát thân vì nghĩa. (The story of those who gave their lives for righteousness.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is formal and literary, often used in historical, philosophical, or heroic contexts to describe profound devotion or martyrdom.
- It can be used to modify nouns (as an adjective) or as a verb phrase with "vì" (for) to indicate the cause of the sacrifice.
Variants and Related Words
- Sát thân thành nhân (idiomatic phrase): To sacrifice oneself to achieve virtue or to become a true person (a righteous person). This is a classical Confucian-inspired concept.
- Truyền thống sát thân thành nhân. (The tradition of sacrificing oneself to achieve virtue.)
Synonyms
- Self-sacrificing: Sacrificing one's own interests or life.
- Martyr-like: Characteristic of a martyr.
- To die for a cause: To perish in support of a principle.
Related Idioms
- Sát thân thành nhân: As above, an idiom meaning to sacrifice one's life to fulfill one's humanity or moral duty.
- Câu chuyện là một minh họa cho tư tưởng sát thân thành nhân. (The story is an illustration of the "sacrifice oneself to achieve virtue" ideal.)