परसों (parson)
adverb
One word, two mirror-image meanings depending on tense context: 'day before yesterday' when talking about the past, and 'day after tomorrow' when talking about the future.
Sense
1
:
day after tomorrow
adverb Context (future-tense verb, or another future time word nearby) is what signals this reading rather than the 'day before yesterday' one.
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: Hindi collapses 'day before yesterday' and 'day after tomorrow' into one word, and even native speakers occasionally pause mid-sentence to clarify which one they mean -- listen for the verb tense, not the word itself, to know which direction in time is being pointed at.
Common Mistakes: 1) Learners often assume परसों (parson) always means 'day before yesterday' because that is the sense usually taught first; the future reading is just as common and depends entirely on the tense of the sentence, not on any change in the word itself. 2) Do not reach for a two-word phrase here -- English needs 'day after tomorrow' but Hindi covers it with this single word.
Sample Sentences:
परसों मेरा जन्मदिन है।
The day after tomorrow is my birthday.
(parson meraa janmdin hai।)
परसों हम लोग जयपुर जाएंगे।
The day after tomorrow, we will go to Jaipur.
(parson ham log jaypur jaaenge।)
क्या तुम परसों मुझसे मिल सकते हो?
Can you meet me the day after tomorrow?
(kyaa tum parson mujhse mil sakte ho?)
परसों तक यह काम पूरा हो जाना चाहिए।
This work should be finished by the day after tomorrow.
(parson tak yah kaam pooraa ho jaanaa chaahie।)
परसों वाली मीटिंग रद्द कर दी गई है।
The meeting that was for the day after tomorrow has been cancelled.
(parson vaalii miiting radd kar dii gaii hai।)
अगर परसों बारिश होती, तो हम पिकनिक नहीं जा पाते।
If it were to rain the day after tomorrow, we would not be able to go on the picnic.
(agar parson baarish hotii, to ham piknik nahiin jaa paate।)
कृपया परसों तक रिपोर्ट भेज दीजिए।
Please send the report by the day after tomorrow.
(kripyaa parson tak riport bhej diijie।)
उसने कहा कि वह परसों लौट आएगी।
She said that she would return the day after tomorrow.
(usne kahaa ki vah parson laut aaegii।)
शायद परसों तक बारिश रुक जाए।
Perhaps the rain will stop by the day after tomorrow.
(shaayad parson tak baarish ruk jaae।)
परसों के बारे में अभी से इतना मत सोचो, आज पर ध्यान दो।
Don't think so much about the day after tomorrow right now, focus on today.
(parson ke baare men abhii se itnaa mat socho, aaj par dhyaan do।)
परसों तक सारा सामान पैक किया जा चुका होगा।
By the day after tomorrow, all the luggage will have been packed.
(parson tak saaraa saamaan paik kiyaa jaa chukaa hogaa।)
Sense
2
:
day before yesterday
adverb Signaled by past-tense verbs elsewhere in the sentence.
Frequency: high
Cultural Note: This sense pairs naturally with कल (kal, 'yesterday/tomorrow') in a little escalating chain Hindi speakers use casually: आज, कल, परसों (aaj, kal, parson, 'today, yesterday/tomorrow, day before/after') -- worth learning as a set.
Common Mistakes: 1) Confusing this with कल (kal), which covers both 'yesterday' and 'tomorrow' -- परसों (parson) is specifically two days away, never one.
Sample Sentences:
परसों मैं बाज़ार गया था।
I went to the market the day before yesterday.
(parson main baazaar gayaa thaa।)
परसों की बात है, हम दोनों साथ बैठे थे।
It happened the day before yesterday -- the two of us were sitting together.
(parson kii baat hai, ham donon saath baithe the।)
क्या तुम्हें परसों वाली बात याद है?
Do you remember the thing from the day before yesterday?
(kyaa tumhen parson vaalii baat yaad hai?)
परसों से मेरा सिर दर्द कर रहा है।
My head has been hurting since the day before yesterday.
(parson se meraa sir dard kar rahaa hai।)
काश मैं परसों उससे मिल पाता।
I wish I had been able to meet him the day before yesterday.
(kaash main parson usse mil paataa।)
अगर परसों बारिश न होती, तो हम पिकनिक पर जाते।
If it hadn't rained the day before yesterday, we would have gone on a picnic.
(agar parson baarish n hotii, to ham piknik par jaate।)
आज, कल, परसों -- हर दिन वही रूटीन।
Today, yesterday, the day before -- the same routine every day.
(aaj, kal, parson -- har din vahii rootiin।)
परसों जो चिट्ठी भेजी गई थी, वह आज पहुँची।
The letter that was sent the day before yesterday arrived today.
(parson jo chitthii bhejii gaii thii, vah aaj pahunchii।)
मुझे लगता है परसों ही यह फ़ैसला हुआ होगा।
I think this decision must have been made only the day before yesterday.
(mujhe lagtaa hai parson hii yah faislaa huaa hogaa।)
परसों तक तो सब ठीक था, फिर अचानक क्या हो गया?
Until the day before yesterday everything was fine, so what suddenly happened?
(parson tak to sab thiik thaa, phir achaanak kyaa ho gayaa?)
आपने परसों जो कहा था, कृपया उसे दोहराइए।
Please repeat what you said the day before yesterday.
(aapne parson jo kahaa thaa, kripyaa use dohraaie।)