Ăn mày là ai, ăn mày là ta, đói cơm rách áo hóa ra ăn mày
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
When circumstances change, even the well-off may become impoverished
Literally: Who begs is him, who begs is me, hungry and tattered becomes a beggar
Where it’s used:
Used
Toàn quốc & hải ngoại · Vietnam-wide & diaspora
Sources & notes
Listed on Vietnamese Wikiquote “Tục ngữ Việt Nam” (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “Ăn mày là ai, ăn mày là ta, đói cơm rách áo hóa ra ăn mày” mean?
When circumstances change, even the well-off may become impoverished Literally: Who begs is him, who begs is me, hungry and tattered becomes a beggar
Is “Ăn mày là ai, ăn mày là ta, đói cơm rách áo hóa ra ăn mày” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.