phép vua thua lệ làng

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [fɛp̚˧˦ vuə˧˧ tʰuə˧˧ le˧˨ʔ laːŋ˨˩]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [fɛp̚˦˧˥ vuə˧˧ tʰuə˧˧ lej˨˩ʔ laːŋ˦˩]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [fɛp̚˦˥ vuə˧˧ tʰuə˧˧ lej˨˩˨ laːŋ˨˩] ~ [fɛp̚˦˥ juə˧˧ tʰuə˧˧ lej˨˩˨ laːŋ˨˩]

Phrase

phép vua thua lệ làng

1. (literal) even the monarch's law loses to a village's norms
2. (figurative) local norms are so powerful that they can overrule any other authority