«لَا أَلْفْ لِي وَلَا أَلْفْ لَكْ»

The saying punctures a pretense that two people share. Each of them likes to boast of riches or advantages he does not really possess, and each knows the other's claims are as hollow as his own. Naming a missing thousand on both sides, its unit left unstated though money is the natural reading, admits neither has anything to show off.

Beyond the money, the expression asks for candor once outsiders are gone. Whatever face two companions present to the world, between themselves they gain nothing by keeping up the bluff. It is a call to lay boasting aside and speak plainly as equals who see through each other.

Fits a private moment between two people who both inflate their wealth or standing in public. One says it to the other to drop the act, implying neither can fool the other. It assumes equal footing and can sound blunt if aimed at someone not engaged in the same pretense.