Có mặt thì đánh, quạnh mặt thì thương
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Treat someone kindly when they are present, but take advantage when they are absent
Examples
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Headword listed in the vdict.com proverb dictionary index (discovery source; headword only — no source content copied). Entered as candidate 2026-08-05; definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-08-05; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “Có mặt thì đánh, quạnh mặt thì thương” mean?
Treat someone kindly when they are present, but take advantage when they are absent Literally: Have face then hit, lack face then love
Is “Có mặt thì đánh, quạnh mặt thì thương” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.