Tiếng Việt · Proverb Candidate

Một nhát đến tai, hai nhát đến gáy

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

A small mistake can lead to bigger consequences

Literally: One cut to the ear, two cuts to the neck

Examples

Anh ấy chỉ làm một sai lầm nhỏ, nhưng rồi mọi thứ trở nên tồi tệ hơn: một nhát đến tai, hai nhát đến gáyHe made only a small mistake, but then everything got worse: one cut to the ear, two cuts to the neck

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 2026-08-07; pending editor spot-check.

Common questions

What does “Một nhát đến tai, hai nhát đến gáy” mean?

A small mistake can lead to bigger consequences Literally: One cut to the ear, two cuts to the neck

Is “Một nhát đến tai, hai nhát đến gáy” formal or informal?

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

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