đọa lạc
Definition
- Verb (archaic, literary):
- To degenerate; to fall into a low or depraved state: Refers to a moral, spiritual, or social decline from a former, better condition.
- To be condemned to a wretched fate; to be cast down: Often implies a fall from grace or fortune into misery, sometimes with a connotation of divine punishment or karmic retribution.
Usage Examples
- Verb:
- Con người ấy đã đọa lạc vì nghiện ngập. (That person has degenerated because of addiction.)
- Truyện cổ tích thường kể về những vị thần bị đọa lạc xuống trần gian. (Folk tales often tell of gods cast down to the mortal world.)
- Linh hồn tội lỗi bị đọa lạc xuống địa ngục. (The sinful soul was condemned to hell.)
Advanced Usage
- This word is primarily used in literary, philosophical, or religious contexts to describe a profound and tragic fall. It is not common in everyday modern speech.
- It often carries a solemn, dramatic weight, describing an irreversible or severe decline.
Variants and Related Words
- Đọa (v, literary): to punish; to condemn. Often part of compound words like "đọa đày" (to torment).
- Sa đọa (v): to become depraved; to degenerate. This is a more commonly used modern synonym.
- Lối sống sa đọa đã hủy hoại anh ta. (A depraved lifestyle destroyed him.)
Synonyms
- Degenerate: to decline to a lower state.
- Fall: to descend to a lower level, especially morally.
- Be condemned: to be sentenced to a terrible fate.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- Bị đọa lạc: to be cast into wretchedness.
- Kẻ phản bội bị đọa lạc trong sự khinh bỉ của mọi người. (The traitor was cast into the contempt of all.)
- While not a standalone idiom, the word frequently appears in contexts related to "đọa lạc luân hồi" (condemned to the cycle of samsara) in Buddhist-influenced texts.