khó mới có mà ăn, ngồi không ai dễ đem phần tới cho
Only the hard-up have food — no one delivers portions to the idle; want is what gets people working.
Browse all entries 1045
All languages English Tiếng Việt
khó nằm giữa chợ chẳng ai han, giàu ở lâm san, ghe kẻ tìm tới
Poor in the market's middle, unasked-after; rich in the deep forest, sought by boats — money, not distance, decides your visitors.
khó sạch rách thơm
Poor but clean, ragged but fragrant — integrity kept laundered whatever the wardrobe.
khóc hổ ngươi, cười ra nước mắt
Ashamed to weep, laughing out tears — caught where neither face will fit.
khóc nhè chè thiu
Whimpering over stale tea — sulky crying over nothing worth the tears.
khô cả cổ
Talked till the throat runs dry — pleading at length to ears that never open.
khô như con mắm
Dry as salted fish — desiccated; a person or prose with all the juice cured out.
khôn ba năm, dại một giờ
Even smart people can have a momentary lapse in judgement. / Even Homer sometimes nods.
khôn cho người ta giái, dại cho người ta thương
Be clever enough to be feared, or artless enough to be loved — only the in-between draws hate.
khôn chẳng qua nhẽ, khoẻ chẳng qua nhời
Cleverness yields to reason, strength to words — argument outranks both wit and muscle.
khôn một người một léo, khéo một người một ý
Each clever head its own trick, each skilled hand its own way — mastery never comes in one pattern.
khôn ngoan chẳng bằng thật thà
Cunning is no match for honesty — the straight measure outlasts every crooked one.
khôn ngoan chẳng lọ là nhiều Người khôn mới nói nửa điều đã khôn
Wisdom isn't measured by volume — the wise show wise in half a sentence.
khôn ngoan chẻ vỏ
Armed with fangs and beak — equipped to bite back; not to be handled bare.
khôn ngoan giữa đám ba bề, chớ cho ai lận chớ hề lận ai
Sharp on every side of the market — neither cheated nor cheating: that is the whole of commercial wisdom.
khôn ngoan đối đáp người ngoài Gà cùng một mẹ chớ hoài đá nhau
Be clever answering outsiders — chicks of one mother must never spar with each other — solidarity begins in the coop.
khôn nhà dại chợ
clever at home but foolish out on the street; a smart aleck among family but timid among strangers
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.
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.