Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Having a short life; dying young: Describes a person, especially a young person, whose life ends prematurely, before reaching old age.
   • Premature (in death): Indicates that death occurred at an unexpectedly early age.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • Cô ấy đã qua đời khi còn rất trẻ, thật là một cuộc đời yểu. (She passed away very young; it was truly a short life.)
  • Trong câu chuyện, nhân vật chính bị bệnh và chết yểu. (In the story, the main character falls ill and dies young.)
  • Số phận yểu mệnh của nàng khiến mọi người thương tiếc. (Her fate of a premature death made everyone mourn.)

Advanced Usage

• Literary/Classical Context: The word "yểu" is often used in literary, poetic, or classical contexts to convey a sense of tragic beauty or unfulfilled potential due to an early death. It is less common in casual, everyday modern speech.
  • Hoa đào nở sớm lại tàn nhanh, cũng như kiếp người yểu số. (The peach blossom blooms early and withers quickly, just like a person with a short life.)

Variants and Related Words

• Yểu mệnh / Yểu số (Compound Noun Phrases): Fate/destiny of a short life; premature death.
  • Truyền thuyết kể về một nàng công chúa yểu mệnh. (The legend tells of a princess with a fate of a short life.)
• Chết yểu (Verb Phrase): To die young; to die prematurely.
  • Cây non bị sâu bệnh và chết yểu. (The young tree was diseased and died prematurely.)

Synonyms

• Đoản thọ: Short-lived (more formal/literary, often used in parallel with "yểu").
• Chết non: To die young (more direct and colloquial).

Related Phrases / Idioms

• Hồng nhan bạc mệnh / Hồng nhan đa truân: (Idiom) Literally "rosy cheeks, thin fate" or "beauty often meets with misfortune." This idiom is frequently associated with the concept of "yểu," describing a beautiful woman who suffers an unfortunate, often early, death.
  • Người ta thường nàng ấy là hồng nhan bạc mệnh, tài sắc vẹn toàn nhưng lại yểu số. (People often said she was a beauty with a thin fate, perfectly talented and beautiful but with a short life.)

adj

1. short life, premature