khôn thuở nên ba, dại cho đến già còn dại
Wise by three or foolish to the grave — native wit shows in the cradle; only study amends it.
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Where will you be? Anywhere Hà Nội & the NorthHuế / Đà Nẵng & the CenterSài Gòn & the SouthOnline slang Bắc ↔ Nam words
khôn thì sống, mống thì chết
The quick live, the slow die — wits are the first survival equipment.
khôn văn tế, dại văn bia
Clever in the eulogy, foolish on the stele — flatter the living aloud, but carve stone carefully.
khôn ăn cái, dại ăn nước
The wise eat the solids, the foolish drink the broth — advantage goes to whoever knows which part matters.
khôn ăn người, dại người ăn
The clever eat others; the foolish are eaten — the market's shortest food chain.
khôn đâu cho trẻ, khỏe đâu cho già
Wisdom skips the young, vigor skips the old — each age lacks the other's gift.
khôn độc không bằng ngốc đàn
A lone sage is less than a chorus of simpletons — many plain heads outvote one brilliant one.
không ai chịu cha ăn cướp
No one owns to being the robber's father — even thieves' kin want clean hands; guilt finds no volunteers.
không ai nắm tay đến tối, không ai gối đầu đến sáng
No hand stays clasped till nightfall, no head shares the pillow till dawn — nobody's safety is guaranteed the whole way.
không biết thì dựa cột mà nghe
If you don't know something listen.
không cha có chú ai ơi Thay mặt đối lời chú cũng như cha
No father? There's the uncle — standing in, word for word, the uncle serves as father.
không chó bắt mèo ăn dơ
No dog? The cat gets the scraps duty — necessity promotes whoever's left.
không có bông tuyết nào trong sạch
no one is an angel; no one is perfect; no one is above reproach
không có chi
you are welcome; no problem
không có gì
You’re welcome. / No problem.
không có lửa làm sao có khói
without fire, how is there smoke?
không có lửa sao có khói
"There is no effect without some cause." or "It is supposed that if there is a rumour, there must be some truth behind it.".
không công cha ăn công cốc Không nghĩa mẹ có ngồi liếm đĩa
Without father's labor you'd eat empty air; without mother's care you'd sit licking plates — the blunt accounting of what parents provide.
không làm thì đừng ăn
No work, no eating — the table serves only the hands that served it.
không phải dạng vừa đâu
Not the average sort at all — a warning that someone is far more formidable than they look.
không thầy đố mày làm nên
without a teacher, I dare you to do or make anything of note
không voi bò làm lớn
No elephant, so the ox stands tallest — rank by default; the throne of the absent.
không vào hang cọp sao bắt được cọp con
Can't catch a tiger without going into its cave.
không ăn ốc phải đổ vỏ
Never ate the snails, still stuck with the shells — the mess assigned to whoever missed the meal.
khúc đột tỉ tân vô ân trạch, tiêu đầu lan ngạch vi thượng khách
No thanks for moving the firewood from the crooked chimney; the scorched-browed fire-fighter sits as guest of honor — prevention unthanked, rescue feted.
khảng khái vô biên
Boundlessly 'generous' — said through the teeth of a man who counts every đồng.
khẩu thuyết vô bằng
Spoken words are no evidence — testimony evaporates; get it in writing.
khẩu đầu chi giao
A friendship of the mouth's front porch — cordiality that never once steps inside.
khắc cốt ghi tâm
stamped or etched in one's memory; unforgettable
khắc cốt minh tâm
stamped or etched in one's memory; unforgettable
khỏi rên quên thầy
Groans over, doctor forgotten — health restores amnesia toward its restorer.
khổ tận cam lai
When bitterness ends, sweetness comes — suffering exhausted, better days arrive.
kim ngọc dị cầu, danh ô nan thục
Gold and jade are easily sought; a stained name has no ransom — treasure is replaceable, reputation not.
kim vàng ai nỡ uốn câu Người khôn ai nỡ nói nhau nặng lời
Who would bend a gold needle into a fish-hook — who with sense would bend a harsh word against another — worth is too fine for cruel use.
kinh cung chi điểu
The bow-shocked bird — once shot at, forever flinching at anything bent.
kinh thiên động địa
world-shaking; earthshattering
kiên nhẫn là mẹ thành công
patience is mother of success.
kiên quan vi bác bất
Firewood that stays clean in the fire — keeping one's integrity intact amid corruption.
Kiêu ngạo đi trước, bại hoại theo sau. (Kinh Thánh)
Pride comes before the fall. (the Bible) Mr. B.
kiếm củi ba năm thiêu một giờ
Three years gathering firewood, burned in one hour — years of careful saving destroyed by one folly.
kiến bò miệng chén
An ant circling the cup's rim — busy travel, zero progress, no way off.
kiến bất thủ nhi tầm thiên lý
Seen and not seized, then sought a thousand miles — the chance passed up costs the journey after it.
kiến dị tư thiên
Seeing the strange, itching to copy it — imitating every novelty one meets.
kiến hiền tư tề diên, kiến bất hiền nhi nội tự tỉnh
Meet the worthy and measure up; meet the unworthy and audit yourself — every encounter is a mirror.
kiến leo cột sắt chi mòn, vò vò xây ổ sao tròn mà xây
Ants wearing grooves in iron, the mud-wasp rounding her nest — patience and craft where strength is absent.
kiến lợi vong ngãi
Seeing profit, forgetting principle — the eye on the gain and the conscience nowhere.
kiến ngãi bất vi vô dõng dã
To see the right thing and not do it is to lack courage — inaction before duty is its own cowardice.
kiến pháp tri ân
Show the law first, collect the gratitude after — power flexing its rulebook so its mercy earns interest.
kiến tha lâu đầy lỗ
Ants hauling long enough fill the burrow — persistence is accumulation's whole secret.
kiến tài ám nhãn
Gold in sight, eyes go dark — the shine that switches conscience off.
kiết thảo hàm hoàn
Knot the grass, bear the ring — gratitude repaid even from beyond the grave, as the old tale tells.
kiềng ba chân
A trivet's three legs — stability by design; the classic image of firm footing.
kiện củ khoai
A debt from a former life — obligation older than this body.
klq
Texting shortcut for “không liên quan” — unrelated / off-topic (the polite cough before changing the subject).
ky-cóp cho cọp nó ăn
Scrimping and saving for the tiger to eat — a lifetime's hoard served to the predator in one sitting.
kén cá chọn canh
Picky with the fish, choosy with the soup — fastidiousness auditioning every option.
kéo cầy giả nợ
Pulling the plow to pay the debt — labor mortgaged years ahead.
kê minh cẩu đạo
Cock-crow imitators and dog-thieves — the lowly hangers-on whose small tricks save great lords, as in Mengchang's tale.
kì hậu dã bạc, kì bạc dã hậu
Generous where thrift was owed, thrifty where generosity was — kindness distributed by the wrong map.
kì phụ nhương dương, nhi tử chứng chi
The father stole the sheep and the son testified — honesty that breaks a deeper duty; kin owe each other cover.