dở khôn dở dại

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

Meaning · English

Half wise, half foolish — neither cleverness nor folly, but an unsettling in-between.

Literally: half-clever, half-daft
Sources & notes

Discovered via Vietnamese Wiktionary, Thể loại:Thành ngữ tiếng Việt (CC BY-SA 4.0); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.

Common questions

What does “dở khôn dở dại” mean?

Half wise, half foolish — neither cleverness nor folly, but an unsettling in-between. Literally: half-clever, half-daft

Is “dở khôn dở dại” formal or informal?

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