để mả

Người xưa để mả trên một ngọn đồi thấp.

Definition

1. Verb (archaic):
   • To leave fallow: The primary meaning of "để mả" is an agricultural term for leaving a piece of land uncultivated or unused for a period of time to allow it to recover its fertility.
   • To let lie fallow: It describes the deliberate practice of resting farmland.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Người nông dân quyết định để mả đất này. (The farmer decided to leave this plot fallow.)
  • Đất canh tác cần được để mả sau vài vụ. (Cultivated land needs to be left fallow after several crops.)

Advanced Usage

• The term "để mả" is considered archaic in modern Vietnamese. In contemporary agricultural or general contexts, phrases like "để đất" (to leave land), "cho đất nghỉ" (to let land rest), or "bỏ hoang" (to leave uncultivated/wild) are more commonly used.

Variants and Related Words

• Để đất (v): to leave land (fallow). This is the more common, modern equivalent.
  • Họ để đất một năm cho màu mỡ trở lại. (They leave the land for a year for the fertility to return.)

Synonyms

• To fallow: to plow and leave (land) unseeded.
• To let lie fallow: to leave land uncultivated.
• To leave uncultivated: to not use land for growing crops.

Notes on Usage

• "Để mả" is an obsolete term. Learners should understand its historical meaning but use modern equivalents like "để đất" or "bỏ hoang" for active communication. Its usage today might only be found in historical texts or discussions about traditional farming practices.