January 28, 2021

Today’s Hindi idiom (मुहावरा) is:

चप्पा-चप्पा छानना।

(Transliteration: Chappa chappa chaan-na.)

Chappa: 4-fingers wide

Literal translation: To search ‘chappa’ by ‘chappa.’ (Chappa is a small length, defined as ‘four fingers wide.’)

Figurative meaning: To search minutely (within a specified area).

Usage in a sample sentence:

पुलिस ने फरार अपराधी की तलाश में शहर का चप्पा चप्पा छान मारा, लेकिन वोह नहि मिला।

(Transliteration:  Pulees ne faraar apraadhi ki talash mein shahar ka chappa chappa chaan mara, lekin woh nahi mila.)

Translation:  The police searched ‘chappa chappa’ (every inch) of the city for the absconding criminal, but they could not find him.

Origins of the idiom: Chappa is a small measure of length, defined as the width of four fingers held together. When we search for something very minutely over a given area, we do it by searching one small area at a time. We may say that we searched “inch by inch” or we may say in Hindi, “chappa by chappa.”