Definition

1. Verb:
   • To lose ground: To be in a weakened or disadvantaged position, often in a competition, conflict, or social hierarchy.
   • To fall from power/grace: To lose one's former status, authority, or influential position.
   • To be at a disadvantage: To be in an unfavorable situation with little support or leverage.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Đội nhà bắt đầu thất thế trong hiệp hai. (The home team began to lose ground in the second half.)
  • Ông ấy là một chính trị gia thất thế sau cuộc bầu cử. (He is a politician who fell from power after the election.)
  • Khi không có sự ủng hộ, họ cảm thấy hoàn toàn thất thế. (Without support, they felt completely at a disadvantage.)

Advanced Usage

• The term often implies a comparative decline from a previously stronger or more dominant state. It is frequently used in political, martial, or competitive contexts to describe a shift in fortunes.

Variants and Related Words

• Lâm vào thế thất thế (verb phrase): to fall into a disadvantaged position.
  • Công ty đã lâm vào thế thất thế trước đối thủ. (The company fell into a disadvantaged position against its competitor.)

Synonyms

• To be disadvantaged: To be in an unfavorable circumstance.
• To be eclipsed: To have one's importance or power diminished by another.
• To be ousted: To be forced out of a position of power.

Related Idioms

• Anh hùng thất thế: A hero who has fallen from their former power or favorable circumstances. This idiom evokes sympathy for a capable person now in a weak position.
  • Câu chuyện kể về một anh hùng thất thế. (The story is about a hero who has fallen from grace.)

verb

1. to lose ground, to go down in the world