Definition

1. Verb (informal):
   • To give final instructions before death: To utter one's last wishes or commands on one's deathbed.
2. Adverbial phrase (informal):
   • For the last time before death; as a final act before dying: Used to describe an action one does, intending it to be the final one before the end of life. It often carries a tone of doing something thoroughly or extravagantly for this "last" time.
   • Extremely; to the utmost (for emphasis): Used hyperbolically to emphasize the intensity, scale, or finality of an action, not necessarily related to actual death.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Ông cụ ốm nặng, đang trối già với con cháu. (The old man is seriously ill and is giving his final instructions to his children and grandchildren.)
• Adverbial phrase:
  • Bà ấy muốn đi du lịch châu Âu một chuyến trối già. (She wants to take a trip to Europe as a final hurrah before she dies.)
  • Hôm nay tôi ăn món này trối già đã! (Today I'm going to eat this dish to my heart's content!)

Advanced Usage

• The phrase is informal and colloquial. Its use as an adverbial phrase for emphasis is very common in spoken Vietnamese, often with a humorous or exaggerated tone.
• It can express a sense of seizing a final opportunity or indulging without restraint.

Variants and Related Words

• Trối trăng (v, informal): A variant with the same meaning as the verb form of "trối già," meaning to give last words.
• Di ngôn (n): A more formal term for a last will, testament, or dying words.

Synonyms

• Verb: To bequeath (a wish), to give last words, to utter a final wish.
• Adverbial phrase: One last time, for the last time, to the fullest, without restraint.

Related Idioms

• Ăn trối già: To eat heartily or extravagantly as if it were the last meal.
  • Hôm nay có tiền, tụi mình đi ăn trối già thôi! (We have money today, let's go eat like there's no tomorrow!)