Definition

1. Verb:
   • To secretly or discreetly appropriate benefits, profits, or resources for oneself, often in a manner that is hidden from others or involves a breach of trust or shared agreement. It implies acting for personal gain in a covert or selfish way.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • Anh ta bị nghi ngờ là đã ăn mảnh một phần tiền đầu tư của công ty. (He is suspected of having worked stealthily to siphon off a portion of the company's investment money.)
  • Trong hợp tác làm ăn, việc một bên ăn mảnh sẽ phá vỡ lòng tin. (In a business partnership, one party secretly profiting for themselves will destroy trust.)

Advanced Usage

• The term often carries a strong negative connotation, implying deceit, a lack of transparency, or betrayal within a collaborative context (e.g., business, family, or community).
• It can describe actions ranging from taking a hidden commission to secretly consuming shared resources.

Variants and Related Words

• Ăn bớt, ăn chặn (verb): To skim off, to embezzle. These are more direct synonyms for taking a portion dishonestly.
• Hưởng lợi riêng (verb phrase): To enjoy benefits separately/privately. A more neutral or descriptive phrase.
• Tham ô (verb): To embezzle, to misappropriate (often used in formal/legal contexts).

Synonyms

• To embezzle: To steal or misappropriate (money placed in one's trust or belonging to one's employer). (More formal/legal)
• To skim off: To take a portion of something, especially money, in a dishonest way.
• To profit covertly: A descriptive synonym highlighting the secretive nature.

Related Phrases

• Làm việc mờ ám: To engage in shady/underhanded work. This phrase describes the nature of the activity associated with "ăn mảnh".
• Hưởng lợi bất chính: To enjoy illicit gains. This describes the result of "ăn mảnh".

Related Idioms

• Ăn trên ngồi trốc: (Literally: to eat sitting on the chopping block) To take an unfairly large or the best share. This idiom shares the theme of selfishly taking more than one's fair share, though not necessarily secretly.
• Ăn chặn đầu đường: (Literally: to intercept and take at the head of the road) To intercept and take something for oneself, often describing corruption.

verb

1. To work stealthily for one's own profits