bẩy nổi ba chìm

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

Seven times afloat, three times under — a fate tossed like a rice-cake in the pot; Hồ Xuân Hương's phrase for a woman's lot.

Literally: seven floats, three sinks

Examples

Đời bà bẩy nổi ba chìm.Her life: seven times afloat, three times under.

Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)

Sources & notes

Discovered via Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918). Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.

Common questions

What does “bẩy nổi ba chìm” mean?

Seven times afloat, three times under — a fate tossed like a rice-cake in the pot; Hồ Xuân Hương's phrase for a woman's lot. Literally: seven floats, three sinks

Is “bẩy nổi ba chìm” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.