If two's company and three's a crowd, what are four and five?

The well-known saying, "two's company, three's a crowd," is a proverb that has been around since at least the 16th century, suggesting that an intimate or comfortable situation between two people can be disrupted by the presence of a third. It often implies that two individuals, particularly those in a romantic relationship, prefer to be alone, and an additional person is seen as an intrusion. This idiom highlights the social dynamic where a pair enjoys exclusive interaction.

However, the second part of this playful question takes a delightful turn away from social dynamics and into the realm of basic arithmetic. After setting up a phrase that makes us think about relationships and group sizes, the question "what are four and five?" cleverly shifts gears entirely. It's designed to make you ponder a complex, abstract continuation of the initial idiom, when in fact, it's much simpler.

The phrase "what are four and five?" is a direct mathematical query. It is not asking for a continuation of the idiomatic pattern, but rather for the sum of the two numbers presented. Therefore, when you add four and five together, the result is nine. The trick of the question lies in this unexpected pivot, moving from a common saying about human interaction to a fundamental calculation.