trăm hay chẳng bằng tay quen
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
A hundred clevernesses are less than one practiced hand — theory loses to calluses.
Literally: hundred skills don't equal the accustomed hand
Examples
Trăm hay chẳng bằng tay quen, cứ để thợ cũ làm.A hundred theories lose to one practiced hand — let the old hand do it.
Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)
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 “trăm hay chẳng bằng tay quen” mean?
A hundred clevernesses are less than one practiced hand — theory loses to calluses. Literally: hundred skills don't equal the accustomed hand
Is “trăm hay chẳng bằng tay quen” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.
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