Definition

1. Noun:
   • Temples and shrines: A collective term referring to grand, often historical, structures built for worship, commemoration, or as monuments. It typically implies buildings of significant scale, architectural importance, and cultural or religious purpose, such as those dedicated to national heroes, deities, or royalty.
   • Monuments and memorials: In a broader sense, it can refer to large, imposing structures or complexes built to honor and remember important historical figures or events.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Thủ đô Hà Nội có nhiều đền đài cổ kính. (The capital Hanoi has many ancient temples and shrines.)
  • Khu di tích này bao gồm nhiều đền đài lăng tẩm. (This historical site includes many temples, shrines, and tombs.)
  • Họ xây dựng đền đài để tưởng nhớ vị anh hùng dân tộc. (They built a grand monument to commemorate the national hero.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "đền đài" often carries a connotation of formal, official, and architecturally substantial structures, as opposed to smaller, more humble places of worship like "miếu" (a small shrine) or "đình" (a communal house).
• It is frequently used in historical, cultural, and literary contexts to evoke a sense of grandeur, permanence, and solemnity.

Variants and Related Words

• Đền (n): A temple; a shrine. A core component of "đền đài," usually referring to a single such structure.
  • đền thờ Nguyễn Trãi (the temple worshipping Nguyen Trai)
• Đài (n): A platform; a tower; a monument. Can refer to part of a commemorative structure.
• Đền thờ (n): A worship temple; a place of sacrificial rites.
• Lăng tẩm (n): Royal tombs and mausoleums, often mentioned together with "đền đài."

Synonyms

• Temple: A building devoted to religious worship or ceremony.
• Shrine: A place regarded as holy because of its associations with a divinity or a sacred person.
• Monument: A structure erected to commemorate persons or events.
• Mausoleum: A stately or impressive building housing a tomb or group of tombs.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• Xây đền đài (trong mộng tưởng): To build castles in the air; to have grandiose but unrealistic plans or dreams.
  • Anh ta chỉ suốt ngày xây đền đài trong mộng tưởng. (He just spends all day building castles in the air.)

1. Temples, sanctuaries and shrines
   • đền thờ Nguyễn Trãi