Definition

1. Verb:
   • To keep away from; to avoid: To deliberately stay at a distance from someone or something, often to avoid negative influence, conflict, or unpleasant interaction.
   • To shun; to ostracize: To exclude or reject someone from a social group, leaving them isolated.
   • To withdraw from; to distance oneself from: To remove oneself from a particular environment, lifestyle, or group of people.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Cô ấy quyết định xa lánh những người bạn tiêu cực. (She decided to keep away from negative friends.)
  • Sau vụ bê bối, anh ta bị mọi người trong làng xa lánh. (After the scandal, he was shunned by everyone in the village.)
  • Ông cụ muốn xa lánh chốn phồn hoa đô hội. (The old man wanted to withdraw from the bustling urban life.)

Advanced Usage

• The verb "xa lánh" often implies a conscious, deliberate choice to create physical or emotional distance. It can be used in both active ("I avoid them") and passive ("They are avoided") contexts.
• It frequently carries a moral or judgmental connotation, suggesting the subject or object is undesirable, harmful, or socially unacceptable.

Variants and Related Words

• Tránh xa (v): To stay away from, to avoid. This is a close synonym but can be slightly less formal and imply a more immediate avoidance.
  • Hãy tránh xa khu vực nguy hiểm. (Stay away from the dangerous area.)
• Cách ly (v): To isolate, to quarantine. This term is more clinical and often used in medical or official contexts.
  • Bệnh nhân cần được cách ly. (The patient needs to be isolated.)

Synonyms

• Avoid: To keep away from or stop oneself from doing something.
• Shun: To persistently avoid, ignore, or reject someone or something.
• Ostracize: To exclude someone from a society or group.
• Distance oneself: To become less involved or connected.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Sống xa lánh thế gian: To live in seclusion from the world.
  • Sau nhiều biến cố, ông ấy chọn sống xa lánh thế gian. (After many upheavals, he chose to live in seclusion from the world.)
• Bị xa lánh như người mang bệnh: To be shunned as if one had a disease. This idiom emphasizes severe social rejection.
  • Vì tin đồn, cô ấy bị xa lánh như người mang bệnh. (Because of the rumor, she was shunned as if she had a disease.)

verb

1. keep away from