Definition

1. Verb:

   • To come and go, to frequent: To move to and from a place repeatedly, often without staying permanently. It implies transient or recurring movement.
   • To visit, to pass through: To go to a place temporarily, as a visitor or traveler.

2. Adjectival Usage (often in the compound "khách vãng lai"):

   • Transient, passing, casual: Describing someone or something that is not permanent, such as a casual visitor or temporary customer.

Usage Examples

• Verb:

  • Nhiều thương nhân vãng lai giữa hai thị trấn. (Many merchants frequented between the two towns.)
  • Tâm trí anh ấy vãng lai giữa quá khứ và hiện tại. (His mind wandered between the past and the present.)

• Adjectival Usage:

  • Đây chỉ là khách vãng lai, không phải khách quen. (This is just a transient customer, not a regular.)
  • Quán cà phê chủ yếu phục vụ khách vãng lai. (The café mainly serves casual passers-by.)

Advanced Usage

• The word "vãng lai" is classical and literary. In modern spoken Vietnamese, it is most commonly used in the fixed phrase "khách vãng lai" (transient guest/customer). Using it alone as a verb sounds formal or poetic.

Variants and Related Words

• Khách vãng lai (n): A transient guest; a casual customer or passer-by.

  • Bãi đỗ xe này dành cho khách vãng lai. (This parking lot is for transient customers.)

• Qua lại (v): To go back and forth; to have dealings with. (This is the more common, everyday synonym for "to come and go").

  • Hai gia đình qua lại thân thiết. (The two families visit each other closely.)

Synonyms

• To frequent: To visit often.
• To come and go: To move repeatedly to and from.
• Transient: Lasting only for a short time.

Related Idioms

• Khách vãng lai: A set phrase meaning a transient person. It often carries a philosophical nuance about the temporary nature of life and relationships.
  • Đời người chỉ như khách vãng lai. (Human life is merely that of a transient guest.)

verb

1. to come and go, to frequent