sống một đồng không hết, chết mười đồng không đủ
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Alive, one coin lasts; dead, ten aren't enough — the funeral spends what the life saved.
Literally: living: one coin unspent; dead: ten insufficient
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.
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Common questions
What does “sống một đồng không hết, chết mười đồng không đủ” mean?
Alive, one coin lasts; dead, ten aren't enough — the funeral spends what the life saved. Literally: living: one coin unspent; dead: ten insufficient
Is “sống một đồng không hết, chết mười đồng không đủ” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.
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