Meanings
- If one unfortunate event has already occurred, a second and third are likely to occur; if two, a third should be expected.
Antonyms: good things come in threes
Synonyms & antonyms
proverbIf one unfortunate event has already occurred, a second and third are likely to occur; if two, a third should be expected.
Origin
Rooted in human predispositions for such cognitive biases as pareidolia and superstition.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic لا تأتى المصائب فرادى
- لا تأتى المصائب فرادىseveral unfortunate events usually occur together
Chinese Mandarin 禍不單行 /祸不单行
- 禍不單行 /祸不单行 (huòbùdānxíng)several unfortunate events usually occur together
Finnish ei kahta ilman kolmatta
- ei kahta ilman kolmattaseveral unfortunate events usually occur together
French jamais deux sans trois
- jamais deux sans troisseveral unfortunate events usually occur together
Italian non c'è due senza tre
- non c'è due senza treseveral unfortunate events usually occur together
Polish nieszczęścia chodzą parami
- nieszczęścia chodzą paramiseveral unfortunate events usually occur together
Portuguese não há duas sem três.
- não há duas sem três.several unfortunate events usually occur together
Cite this entry
bad things come in threes. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bad%20things%20come%20in%20threes
“bad things come in threes.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bad%20things%20come%20in%20threes. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bad things come in threes,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bad%20things%20come%20in%20threes.
Source: bad things come in threes on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.