Teen Mein Na Terah Mein

# 93

March 25, 2021

Today’s Hindi proverb (कहावत) is:

तीन में न तेरह में।

(Transliteration: Teen mein na terah mein.)

Literal translation: Neither in three nor in thirteen.

Figurative meaning: To be excluded from every coveted list. To be not worthy of any consideration. Fail to get selected in spite of several applications.

Neither in 3 Nor 13

Usage in a sample sentence:
जॉन अपने स्कूल की क्रिकेट, हॉकी या टेनिस टीम में चुने जाने की उम्मीद की थी, लेकिन वह तीन में न तेरह में रहे।

Transliteration: John apnae school ki cricket, hockey ya tennis team mein chunae jaanae ki ummeed kee thi, lekin woh teen mein na terah mein rahae.   

Translation: John was expecting to be selected in his school’s cricket, hockey or tennis team, but he (was neither in three nor in thirteen) didn’t make it to any of the lists.

Origins of the proverb: We cannot be sure of the veracity of this story about the origin of this proverb, but it is nevertheless an interesting one. A wealthy man fell in love with a prostitute, who also told him that she loved him the most. He was so moved that he sent an expensive pearl necklace as a gift to her through his servant with instructions that he should just tell her that it was from the man she loved the most. She liked the necklace and started to guess the name of her benefactor. First, she named three, but the servant told her it was none of those. Then she named thirteen more, but again the servant said the same. She returned the gift saying that she cannot accept a gift from an unknown person. The servant went back to his master and told him that he was wasting his time and money on this, because the master was “neither in three nor in thirteen.”