Is she trouble and a half

The little Chhutki is trouble and a half. She is the naughtiest child in class and keeps all her teachers on their toes.

He is clever and a half. His dad enrolled him for an English speaking course but he manages to find an excuse to miss the class almost everyday. He doesn’t understand that this is not going to help him in anyway.

Clever and a half – means someone just too clever. Trouble and a half means someone who creates just too much amount of trouble. “And a half” essentially means much more than a lot of something and often times, it is used to imply  just too much of something – ज़रुरत से ज्यादा. Usually, it would have negative connotations.

Let’s take a few examples:

1. He is fit and a half. At the age of 70, he runs 5 kilometers everyday and his energy level can put guys of 25 to shame.
2. The politicians think they are too clever and a half but they forget that the public who manages to survive in the mess they have led the country to is not as dumb as they assume it to be. Indian public has given some very mature political verdicts including cutting down several powerful politicians to paupers.
3. He is handsome and a half. If not in the army, he would have been in Bollywood.

As is evident, it is not necessary that “and a half” is always used in the negative sense. It denotes that idea that there is much more of something – in several cases it may mean it is so much that it has become bad but in several cases you may only be talking about a lot of something good.

Let’s take some more examples:

1. Do you think we are a fool and a half? Let me tell you sir, you are mistaken.
2. He is always ready and a half to pick a fight – he fights with watchmen, with bus drivers, with shopkeepers, with milkmen – with everyone he comes in contact with.