Definition

Noun: 1. Hell, Hades, the underworld: In Vietnamese folk belief and mythology, this is the world of the dead, the dark realm where souls reside after death. It is governed by a system of kings and courts that judge the deeds of the deceased. 2. The netherworld, the realm of shadows: A poetic or literary term for the dark, subterranean domain opposite the living world (dương gian).

Usage Examples

• According to legend, after death, the soul must go to âm phủ to be judged by King Diêm Vương. (Theo truyền thuyết, sau khi chết, linh hồn phải xuống âm phủ để bị Diêm Vương xét xử.)
• Folktales often tell of ghosts escaping from âm phủ to return to the world of the living. (Truyện cổ tích thường kể về những hồn ma trốn khỏi âm phủ để trở về dương thế.)
• The concept of âm phủ reflects the idea of retribution in the afterlife. (Khái niệm âm phủ phản ánh quan niệm về sự báo ứng ở kiếp sau.)

Advanced Usage

• Xuống âm phủ / Về âm phủ: To go down to the underworld; a euphemism for dying.
  • Cụ ấy đã về âm phủ từ năm ngoái. (He passed away and went to the underworld last year.)
• Địa ngục âm phủ: A compound emphasizing the hellish, punitive aspect of the underworld.
  • Tội ác của hắn đáng bị đày xuống địa ngục âm phủ. (His crimes deserve to be condemned to the hellish underworld.)

Variants and Related Words

• Địa ngục (noun): Hell. Often used interchangeably with but can more strongly emphasize a place of punishment and torment.
• Cõi âm (noun): The nether realm. A more general and slightly less formal term for the world of spirits and the dead.
• Diêm Vương / Diêm La Vương (proper noun): Yama, the King of Hell who judges souls in .
• Âm ty (noun): Another literary term for the underworld or the courts of hell.

Synonyms

• Hell
• Hades
• The underworld
• The netherworld
• The realm of the dead

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Âm phủ địa ngục: Hell and the underworld; used to describe an extremely miserable, terrifying, or punitive situation.
  • Chiến tranh biến nơi đây thành một âm phủ địa ngục. (The war turned this place into a living hell.)
• Cửa âm phủ: The gates of hell; often used metaphorically for a deadly danger or a point of no return.
  • Vụ tai nạn suýt đẩy anh ta đến cửa âm phủ. (The accident nearly pushed him to the gates of hell.)

noun

1. Hell, Hades