trôi qua

Thời gian trôi qua thật nhanh.

Definition

1. Verb phrase:
   • To pass by / to elapse: The primary meaning of "trôi qua" is for time to move forward or for a period to go by, often with a sense of steady, unstoppable, and sometimes unnoticed progression.
   • To go by / to slip away: It conveys the idea of time or events moving onward, often carrying a neutral or slightly melancholic nuance about the fleeting nature of moments.

Usage Examples

• Verb phrase:
  • Thời gian trôi qua rất nhanh. (Time passes very quickly.)
  • Một năm đã trôi qua kể từ ngày chúng tôi gặp nhau. (A year has gone by since the day we met.)
  • Cứ để mọi chuyện trôi qua đi. (Just let things pass.)

Advanced Usage

• "trôi qua một cách...": to pass in a certain manner.

  • Những ngày hè trôi qua một cách lặng lẽ. (The summer days passed quietly.)

• Used figuratively for events or states:

  • Cơn bão đã trôi qua, để lại nhiều thiệt hại. (The storm has passed, leaving much damage.)

Variants and Related Words

• Trôi (v): to drift, to float, to glide. This is the root verb implying smooth, unimpeded motion.

  • Chiếc thuyền trôi trên sông. (The boat drifts on the river.)

• Qua (prep/v): over, past, to go across. It completes the phrase by adding the meaning of transition or passage.

Synonyms

• Pass: to go by or move past.
• Elapse: (of time) to pass or go by.
• Go by: to pass, as time does.
• Slip away: to pass quickly or unnoticed.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Trôi nổi: to drift, to float; often used metaphorically for a life without stable direction.

  • Cuộc đời anh ấy cứ trôi nổi phiêu bạt. (His life just drifts rootlessly.)

• Để thời gian trôi qua: to let time pass, to bide one's time.

  • Chúng tôi ngồi im lặng, để thời gian trôi qua. (We sat in silence, letting time pass.)