tống cựu
Definition
- Verb phrase:
- To bid farewell to the old: The primary meaning of "tống cựu" is to ceremoniously see off or send away the old year, old things, or outdated ways. It is almost exclusively used in the paired idiom "tống cựu nghinh tân" (to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new).
Usage Examples
- Verb phrase:
- Mọi người cùng nhau tống cựu, nghinh tân trong đêm Giao thừa. (Everyone together bid farewell to the old and welcomed the new on New Year's Eve.)
- Hoạt động này mang ý nghĩa tống cựu. (This activity carries the meaning of seeing off the old.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is deeply cultural and is rarely used in isolation in modern Vietnamese. Its usage is almost entirely fixed within the context of the Lunar New Year (Tết) tradition and the complete idiom "tống cựu nghinh tân".
- Lễ hội là dịp để tống cựu nghinh tân, bỏ qua những điều không vui của năm cũ. (The festival is an occasion to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new, letting go of the unhappiness of the past year.)
Variants and Related Words
- Tống cựu nghinh tân (idiom): To bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. This is the full, standard form.
- Không khí tống cựu nghinh tân tràn ngập khắp phố phường. (The atmosphere of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new fills the streets.)
Synonyms
- To see out the old: To mark the end of an old period.
- To ring out the old: A poetic synonym, often used in the English phrase "ring out the old, ring in the new."
Related Idioms
- Tống cựu nghinh tân: The sole and essential idiom containing this word. It encapsulates a cultural practice of letting go of the past year's misfortunes and joyfully welcoming a new beginning with hope and renewal.