Le Duc Tho

2 8.4

A Vietnamese diplomat who helps end the Vietnam War with Henry Kissinger

proper noun

: Le Duc Tho

Le Duc Tho was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973, but he declined to accept it.

Examples

Many historians credit Le Duc Tho with shaping the outcome of the Paris Peace Accords.
In the peace talks with the United States, Le Duc Tho played a crucial negotiating role.
The famous Vietnamese diplomat Le Duc Tho played a crucial role in peace negotiations.
Did Le Duc Tho really refuse the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973?
Le Duc Tho was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973, but he declined to accept it.
In the peace talks with the United States, Le Duc Tho played a crucial negotiating role.
Many historians credit Le Duc Tho with shaping the outcome of the Paris Peace Accords.

Surface Forms

Le Duc Tho main

Morphology

Le + Duc + Tho

This is a proper name (a historical person); the constituent name parts do not compose to indicate the role or biography. A B1 learner who knows the words 'Le', 'Duc', 'Tho' (or treats them as name segments) cannot infer that this person was a Vietnamese diplomat who negotiated the end of the Vietnam War—such knowledge requires factual/world knowledge, so the expression is non-compositional and opaque.

Etymology

Le Duc Tho is the name of a Vietnamese diplomat. The family name Le comes first and the given names Duc Tho can be read as 'goodness' and 'long life', a simple image to remember a man who helped negotiate peace and 'refused the Nobel Peace Prize'.