Definition

1. Noun:
   • Chickenpox: A common, highly contagious viral disease, primarily affecting children, characterized by fever and a distinctive itchy skin rash that forms small, fluid-filled blisters which eventually crust over.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Con tôi đang bị thủy đậu. (My child has chickenpox.)
  • Thủy đậu là một bệnh rất dễ lây. (Chickenpox is a very contagious disease.)
  • Tiêm vắc-xin có thể phòng ngừa thủy đậu. (Vaccination can prevent chickenpox.)

Advanced Usage

• Medical Context: The term is used specifically for the disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus (VZV). After the initial infection, the virus can remain dormant and later reactivate to cause shingles (herpes zoster) in adults.
  • Bệnh thủy đậu do virus varicella-zoster gây ra. (Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster virus.)

Variants and Related Words

• Trái rạ (n): A common colloquial synonym for "thủy đậu" in Southern Vietnam.
  • Ở miền Nam, nhiều người gọi thủy đậu là trái rạ. (In the South, many people call chickenpox "trái rạ".)
• Bệnh phỏng dạ (n): An older or less common term for chickenpox.

Synonyms

• Chickenpox: The direct and most accurate English equivalent.
• Varicella: The formal medical term for the disease.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Lên thủy đậu: To come down with chickenpox; to have the chickenpox rash appear.
  • Đứa bé đang lên thủy đậu nên rất ngứa. (The child is coming down with chickenpox so it's very itchy.)
• Kiêng gió, kiêng nước khi bị thủy đậu: A traditional Vietnamese belief advising patients to avoid wind and water during chickenpox to prevent complications or scarring. (Note: Modern medicine often questions the necessity of this practice.)
  • Bà nội bảo phải kiêng gió, kiêng nước khi bị thủy đậu. (Grandmother said one must avoid wind and water when having chickenpox.)