Definition

1. Noun:

   • Dozen: A unit of quantity equal to twelve items. This is the most common and practical meaning.
   • Field-grade officer / Major: A military rank for senior officers above captain and below general. This is a specialized, abbreviated term.

2. Verb (colloquial):

   • To fabricate (a pretext): To invent or create an excuse or reason to rely on, often for a dubious purpose.

3. Interrogative particle (literary, archaic):

   • A word used at the end of an interrogative sentence to express a tone of lament, pity, or deep wondering. It is often untranslated directly but adds emotional depth.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Dozen):

  • Cô ấy mua một tá trứng. (She bought a dozen eggs.)
  • Có hàng tá lý do để từ chối. (There are dozens of reasons to refuse.)

• Noun (Military Officer):

  • Ông ấy được thăng cấp lên tá. (He was promoted to the rank of major/field officer.)

• Verb:

  • Hắn tá cớ ốm để nghỉ làm. (He fabricated an excuse of being sick to take a day off.)

• Interrogative Particle:

  • Người xưa đâu tá? (Where, alas, are the people of the past?)

Advanced Usage

• The word "tá" is often used in the structure "hàng tá" to mean "many dozens of" or "a great many," emphasizing a large, indefinite number.
  • Cô ấy có hàng tá giày. (She has dozens and dozens of shoes.)

Variants and Related Words

• Tá lả (adj, colloquial): To be exhausted, worn out, or in a state of disarray.
  • Làm việc cả ngày, tôi thấy tá lả. (Working all day, I feel completely exhausted.)

Synonyms

• Dozen: Twelve.
• Major: A senior military rank.
• Fabricate: To invent or concoct (a story or excuse).
• Alas: An interjection expressing sorrow or pity (for the archaic particle sense).

Related Idioms

• Tá tửu (archaic): To ask for wine; to use a pretext to get a drink.
• The interrogative usage is primarily found in classical Vietnamese poetry and literature to convey a melancholic or rhetorical question.

noun

1. dozen
   • hàng tá xe cộ
     dozens of vehicles. field officer