Giàu thì cơm cháo bổ lao, khó thì đánh điếu thuốc lào ngậm hơi

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

When things are going well, even minor comforts are enjoyable, but when times are tough, one must endure even small hardships

Literally: Rich then rice porridge supplements labor, hard then hitting betel nut pipe to hold breath

Examples

Khi tôi có việc làm, tôi cảm thấy giàu thì cơm cháo bổ lao, nhưng khi mất việc, tôi phải khó thì đánh điếu thuốc lào ngậm hơi.When I have a job, I feel like even minor comforts are enjoyable, but when I'm unemployed, I have to endure even small hardships.

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 2026-08-06; pending editor spot-check.

Common questions

What does “Giàu thì cơm cháo bổ lao, khó thì đánh điếu thuốc lào ngậm hơi” mean?

When things are going well, even minor comforts are enjoyable, but when times are tough, one must endure even small hardships Literally: Rich then rice porridge supplements labor, hard then hitting betel nut pipe to hold breath

Is “Giàu thì cơm cháo bổ lao, khó thì đánh điếu thuốc lào ngậm hơi” formal or informal?

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

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