gìa sanh tật, đất sanh cỏ

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

Meaning · English

Age sprouts infirmities as soil sprouts weeds — the years plant what they please.

Literally: old age breeds ailments, earth breeds grass

Examples

Ông cụ dạo này hay quên, già sanh tật đất sanh cỏ.Grandfather's memory slips now — age grows its weeds like soil.

Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)

Sources & notes

Discovered via Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Tục ngữ, cổ ngữ, gia ngôn (Huỳnh Tịnh Của, 1897). Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.

Common questions

What does “gìa sanh tật, đất sanh cỏ” mean?

Age sprouts infirmities as soil sprouts weeds — the years plant what they please. Literally: old age breeds ailments, earth breeds grass

Is “gìa sanh tật, đất sanh cỏ” formal or informal?

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