bỏ con tép bắt con tôm

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Give up something small to gain something bigger

Literally: Release the shrimp to catch the prawn
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 “bỏ con tép bắt con tôm” mean?

Give up something small to gain something bigger Literally: Release the shrimp to catch the prawn

Is “bỏ con tép bắt con tôm” formal or informal?

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