Definition

1. Interjection:
   • Alas!: An exclamation expressing sorrow, pity, regret, or lamentation.
   • Oh dear! / Oh no!: An exclamation expressing grief, disappointment, or a sense of misfortune.

Usage Examples

• Interjection:
  • Than ôi! Anh ấy đã qua đời. (Alas! He has passed away.)
  • Than ôi, tôi đã làm mất chiếc nhẫn. (Oh dear, I have lost the ring.)
  • Than ôi, chúng ta đã thua trận. (Alas, we have lost the battle.)

Advanced Usage

• "Than ôi" is a literary and somewhat archaic interjection in modern Vietnamese. It is used to convey deep, often poetic, sorrow or regret. It is more commonly found in written language, literature, classical poetry (like , ), or formal lamentations than in everyday spoken conversation.
  • "Than ôi! Thời oanh liệt nay còn đâu?" (Alas! Where have the glorious days gone?) – A famous line from poetry.

Variants and Related Words

• Than thở (verb): To lament, to complain sorrowfully.
  • Cô ấy than thở về số phận của mình. (She lamented her fate.)
• Ôi (interjection): Oh! (A more common, versatile exclamation expressing a range of emotions from surprise to pain to delight).
  • Ôi, đau quá! (Oh, it hurts so much!)
  • Ôi, đẹp quá! (Oh, how beautiful!)

Synonyms

• Thiên tai / Hỡi ơi (interjection): Alas! / Oh dear! (Similar archaic/literary exclamations of sorrow).
• Chao ôi (interjection): Oh my! / Dear me! (Expresses surprise, regret, or pity, slightly less formal than "than ôi").

Related Phrases

• "Than ôi cho phận bạc": Alas for this wretched fate / Poor unfortunate me. A set phrase expressing self-pity or lamenting one's miserable lot.
  • Than ôi cho phận bạc, số tôi sao khổ thế này. (Alas for my wretched fate, why is my life so miserable.)

Related Idioms

• "Than trời trách đất": To blame heaven and earth; to lament one's fate to the heavens. This idiom describes the act of vocalizing deep grief and complaint about one's situation.
  • Sau khi mất việc, anh ta ngồi than trời trách đất. (After losing his job, he sat there lamenting his fate to the heavens.)

1. cảm thán
2. Alas!