Tiếng Việt · Proverb Candidate

Cưa gỗ thì đè cưa tre thì đỡ

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Be gentle with the weak and firm with the strong

Literally: Saw wood then press, saw bamboo then lift

Examples

Khi đối xử với người yếu đuối, anh nên cưa gỗ thì đè cưa tre thì đỡWhen dealing with the weak, you should be gentle, like sawing bamboo, but firm with the strong, like sawing wood

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 2026-08-06; pending editor spot-check.

Common questions

What does “Cưa gỗ thì đè cưa tre thì đỡ” mean?

Be gentle with the weak and firm with the strong Literally: Saw wood then press, saw bamboo then lift

Is “Cưa gỗ thì đè cưa tre thì đỡ” formal or informal?

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

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