aller guten Dinge sind drei
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German[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
- alle guten Dinge sind drei (due to incomprehension of the archaic genitive construction)
Etymology[edit]
Literally, “of all good things there are three”, suggestive inter alia of the Trinity.
Pronunciation[edit]
Proverb[edit]
- third time's a charm; but more general; used as a lighthearted justification for doing something a third time, for including a third person, for taking a third drink, etc.
- Synonym: dreimal ist Bremer Recht
- 1767, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, Minna von Barnhelm[1], 1. Akt, 2. Szene:
- In meinem Leben hat mir das noch niemand gesagt. Noch eins, Herr Just; aller guten Dinge sind drei!
- No one has ever told me this in my life. One more thing, Mr. Just; all good things come in threes!
Further reading[edit]
- “aller guten Dinge sind drei” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- "aller guten Dinge sind drei" in Redensarten-Index