Tiếng Việt · Proverb Candidate

Đục từ đầu sông đục xuống

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Trouble or problems start from the top and affect those below

Literally: Muddy from the head of the river, muddy down

Examples

Vấn đề này bắt nguồn từ cấp trên nên không thể giải quyết ở cấp dướiThis problem originated from the top so it can't be solved at the lower level

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 2026-08-09; pending editor spot-check.

Common questions

What does “Đục từ đầu sông đục xuống” mean?

Trouble or problems start from the top and affect those below Literally: Muddy from the head of the river, muddy down

Is “Đục từ đầu sông đục xuống” formal or informal?

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

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