thấy bở thì đào, thấy mềm thì đục
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Dig where it's crumbly, chisel where it's soft — working every easy mark for all they'll yield.
Literally: find it loose, dig; find it soft, chisel
Sources & notes
Discovered via Vietnamese Wiktionary, Thể loại:Thành ngữ tiếng Việt (CC BY-SA 4.0); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.
Common questions
What does “thấy bở thì đào, thấy mềm thì đục” mean?
Dig where it's crumbly, chisel where it's soft — working every easy mark for all they'll yield. Literally: find it loose, dig; find it soft, chisel
Is “thấy bở thì đào, thấy mềm thì đục” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.