trầm thuyền phá phủ
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Sink the boats, smash the pots — the general's arithmetic: no retreat, therefore victory.
Literally: sink the vessels, break the cauldrons
Examples
Bỏ hẳn đường lui, trầm thuyền phá phủ.He burned the way back — sank the boats, smashed the pots.
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.
Common questions
What does “trầm thuyền phá phủ” mean?
Sink the boats, smash the pots — the general's arithmetic: no retreat, therefore victory. Literally: sink the vessels, break the cauldrons
Is “trầm thuyền phá phủ” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.