Đói thì sang Bắc, chạy giặc xuống Nam

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

When in hardship, go north, and when in war, go south

Literally: Hungry then go North, flee enemy to the South

Examples

Khi mất việc, anh ấy nhớ câu Đói thì sang Bắc, chạy giặc xuống Nam và quyết định lên Hà Nội tìm cơ hộiWhen he lost his job, he recalled the proverb Đói thì sang Bắc, chạy giặc xuống Nam and decided to go to Hanoi to find opportunities

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

Common questions

What does “Đói thì sang Bắc, chạy giặc xuống Nam” mean?

When in hardship, go north, and when in war, go south Literally: Hungry then go North, flee enemy to the South

Is “Đói thì sang Bắc, chạy giặc xuống Nam” formal or informal?

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

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