một người làm xấu, cả bậu mang nhơ

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

Meaning · English

One person's disgrace stains the whole company — a single worm and the soup-pot is poured out.

Literally: one does ugly, the whole band wears the smear

Examples

Một người làm xấu cả bậu mang nhơ, nên giữ mình nhé.One member's disgrace smears the whole crew — hold the line.

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 “một người làm xấu, cả bậu mang nhơ” mean?

One person's disgrace stains the whole company — a single worm and the soup-pot is poured out. Literally: one does ugly, the whole band wears the smear

Is “một người làm xấu, cả bậu mang nhơ” formal or informal?

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