Mua thì thêm, nêm thì chặt

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Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Be generous when giving, but strict when demanding

Literally: Rain adds, salt reduces

Examples

Khi giúp đỡ bạn bè, mua thì thêm, nêm thì chặtWhen helping friends, be generous when giving, but strict when demanding

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 “Mua thì thêm, nêm thì chặt” mean?

Be generous when giving, but strict when demanding Literally: Rain adds, salt reduces

Is “Mua thì thêm, nêm thì chặt” formal or informal?

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

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