Tiếng Việt · Proverb Attested

đo bò làm chuồng

🎙 Say it

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

Also seen as: mềm thì nặn, dắn thì buông

Meaning · English

Measure the ox before building its stall — provision cut to the creature's size.

Literally: gauge the ox to make the pen

Examples

Liệu cơm gắp mắm, đo bò làm chuồng.Fit the stall to the ox — plan to your measure.

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 “đo bò làm chuồng” mean?

Measure the ox before building its stall — provision cut to the creature's size. Literally: gauge the ox to make the pen

Is “đo bò làm chuồng” formal or informal?

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

👁 Views 0 today 0 past 7 days 0 this month 0 all time