trên kính dưới nhường
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
Respect upward, yield downward — the well-ordered household's two directions of courtesy.
Literally: above: honor; below: defer
Examples
Nhà ấy trên kính dưới nhường.That family honors upward and yields downward.
Editorial example (VI sweep batch 040, illustrative)
Sources & notes
Discovered via Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918; public domain, via vi.wikisource); retrieved 2026-08-01. Source: source ↗ Attested in Nam ngạn chích cẩm (Phạm Quang Sán, 1918). Definition is an original editorial synthesis, not copied from the source.
Common questions
What does “trên kính dưới nhường” mean?
Respect upward, yield downward — the well-ordered household's two directions of courtesy. Literally: above: honor; below: defer
Is “trên kính dưới nhường” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.