Definition

1. Verb:
   • To be ailing due to old age: To suffer from the various illnesses, weaknesses, or infirmities that commonly accompany advanced age. This term specifically links the state of being unwell to the factor of aging.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Ông cụ đã già nên hay đái tật. (The old man is advanced in age so he is often ailing.)
  • Tuổi cao thì dễ đái tật. (With old age, one easily becomes ailing.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "đái tật" is often used in a fixed, proverbial context to describe a general condition rather than a specific disease. It emphasizes the inevitability or commonality of health problems in the elderly.
  • Già thì đái tật, đó là lẽ thường. (To be ailing in old age is the natural course of things.)

Variants and Related Words

• Già yếu (adj/phrase): Old and weak; frail. This is a more common and general synonym.
• Lão hóa (verb/noun): To age; the process of aging. This is a neutral term for the biological process.
• Bệnh tật tuổi già (noun phrase): Illnesses of old age. This is a more descriptive, literal phrase.

Synonyms

• Ốm yếu vì tuổi tác: To be sickly and weak due to age.
• Hay đau ốm lúc già: To frequently fall ill when old.

Notes on Meaning and Usage

• "Đái tật" is a somewhat literary or traditional term. In modern everyday conversation, phrases like "già yếu" or "hay đau ốm" are more frequently used.
• The term carries a connotation of chronic, non-specific ailments associated with aging, such as general weakness, joint pain, or minor recurring illnesses, rather than a single acute disease.
• It is important to distinguish this term from simply being sick ("bị ốm"). "Đái tật" inherently implies the cause is the aging process itself.

1. Be ailing because of age
   • Già hay đái tật
     Old age is often ailing