ăn thì cho, buôn thì so
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Food is given freely; goods are haggled — meals escape arithmetic, trade never does.
Literally: for eating, give; for trading, compare
Sources & notes
Discovered via Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897). Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.
Common questions
What does “ăn thì cho, buôn thì so” mean?
Food is given freely; goods are haggled — meals escape arithmetic, trade never does. Literally: for eating, give; for trading, compare
Is “ăn thì cho, buôn thì so” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.