quen nhà mạ, lạ nhà chồng
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
At ease in mother's house, a guest in the husband's — familiarity is an address, not a virtue.
Literally: familiar at mother's, strange at the husband's
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 “quen nhà mạ, lạ nhà chồng” mean?
At ease in mother's house, a guest in the husband's — familiarity is an address, not a virtue. Literally: familiar at mother's, strange at the husband's
Is “quen nhà mạ, lạ nhà chồng” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.