giấy rách phải giữ lấy lề
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Also seen as: giấy rách giữ lề
Meaning · English
A torn page still keeps its margin — however poor you fall, keep your family's honor straight.
Literally: ragged paper must keep its rule-edge
Examples
Nhà nghèo nhưng nề nếp, giấy rách phải giữ lấy lề.Poor, but principled — a torn page keeps its margin.
Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)
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 “giấy rách phải giữ lấy lề” mean?
A torn page still keeps its margin — however poor you fall, keep your family's honor straight. Literally: ragged paper must keep its rule-edge
Is “giấy rách phải giữ lấy lề” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.