chó cần áo rách

/tʃɔ˧˥ kan˧˩ ʔaːw˧˥ zaj˧˥/◆idiom

misery loves company

Anh ấy thấy mình thất bại nên kéo bạn bè cùng thất bại, đúng kiểu 'chó cần áo rách'.

He saw his own failure and dragged his friends down with him, classic 'misery loves company'.

◆ What It Really Means

misery loves company

¶ Literal Meaning

a dog needs tattered clothes

Literal Breakdown

chódog+cầnneeds+áo ráchtattered clothes

◇ Mental Image

A dog wearing tattered clothes, symbolizing shared suffering or the idea that people in misery prefer to be around others in the same state.

◈ When to Use

In a workplace where multiple employees are struggling, one person might drag others down by constantly complaining about their failures, saying, 'We’re all in this together,' when they actually mean, 'Let’s all fail together.'

◉ Cultural Note

This idiom reflects a cultural emphasis on resilience and individual effort in Vietnamese society. It criticizes the idea of seeking comfort in shared failure rather than striving to improve one's situation.

informal

A situation where people who are suffering or in trouble prefer to be around others in the same condition, often to feel less alone or to justify their own failures.

Sau khi bị sa thải, anh ta toàn rủ bạn bè cùng thất nghiệp đi uống rượu, đúng kiểu 'chó cần áo rách'.

After getting fired, he kept dragging his unemployed friends to drink, classic 'misery loves company'.

Often used pejoratively to criticize someone for seeking out others in worse situations to feel better about themselves.

Synonyms

người ta khổ cùng nhau khổ cùng nhau

Antonyms

người ta vui cùng nhau

Related Phrases

chó cùng xó áoidiom

a variation of the same idiom, emphasizing the idea of being stuck together in hardship

khổ cùng nhauphrase

to suffer together, often implying solidarity or shared hardship

Pro Tip

Usage Context

Use this idiom when someone deliberately seeks out others in worse situations to feel better about their own problems. It’s often used in social or workplace contexts to criticize such behavior.

Usage Notes

The idiom implies a negative judgment on the behavior, suggesting that the person is wallowing in their misery by surrounding themselves with others in the same state rather than seeking solutions.

Word Breakdown

chó

dog

root

cần

needs

root

áo rách

tattered clothes

phrase

Từ Điển Việt Anh

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