As They Say In Zanzibar. David Crystal
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BULGARIA
6 Those who jump over a big stone often stumble over a pebble NETHERLANDS
7 The cork is always bigger than the mouth of the bottle ESTONIA
8 The sea is made bigger even by one drop RUSSIA
9 The label is bigger than the package GREECE
10 The feathers make the fowl big CÔTE D’IVOIRE
11 A big fish is caught with big bait SIERRA LEONE
12 Never marry a woman who has bigger feet than you MOZAMBIQUE
13 When the going is rough, big potatoes come to the top USA
14 Stretch your legs according to the length of your bedspread LIBYA
15 God gives the wideness of the mouth according to the bigness of the spoon POLAND
16 The mouse is not crushed under the haystack SCOTLAND
17 Little houses have fat mice TANZANIA
18 Those who have a great nose think everyone speaks of it SCOTLAND
19 The longer the spoke, the greater the tire USA
20 Little crows have the largest beaks BELGIUM
21 The more naked the jackal the larger the tail SOUTH AFRICA
22 Your fingers can’t be of the same length CHINA
23 The cobra knows its length NAMIBIA
24 It ain’t over till the fat lady sings USA
82 LITTLE SIZE
1 Every little bird has a long beak NAMIBIA
2 A little spark shines in the dark FRANCE
3 A little dog is really brave in front of his master’s house HAITI
4 A little wood will heat a little oven ENGLAND
5 Little kettles soon boil over ESTONIA
6 Proverbs are little gospels SPAIN
7 Precious ointments are put in small boxes FRANCE
8 On a level road a small stone upsets the cartload ESTONIA
9 Dynamite comes in small packages USA
10 Small termites collapse the roof ETHIOPIA
83 BIG v LITTLE
1 A big crop is best, but a little crop will do SCOTLAND
2 Big hammers don’t play with little nails GERMANY
3 The biggest help is help, and even the smallest help is help IRELAND
4 A viper is a viper, whether big or small SLOVENIA
5 Big oaks from little acorns grow ENGLAND
6 Law is a spider’s web; big flies break through but the little ones are caught HUNGARY
7 Little crows have the largest beaks BELGIUM
8 Little houses have fat mice TANZANIA
9 The smaller the lizard, the greater its hope of becoming a crocodile ETHIOPIA
10 A little nest is warmer than a big nest IRELAND
11 Those who do not wish little things do not deserve big things BELGIUM
12 The more you squeeze a nettle the less it stings GERMANY
13 You must take the little potato with the big potato IRELAND
84 DISTANCE
1 The broth from a distance grows cool on the road KENYA
2 Thin ice and thick ice look the same from a distance USA
3 Better do a good deed near at home than go far away to burn incense CHINA
4 The apple does not fall far from the apple-tree ALBANIA
5 Far waters cannot quench near fires CHINA
6 The seagull sees furthest who flies highest FRANCE
7 The absent get farther off every day JAPAN
8 It is easy to lie about a far-off country ETHIOPIA
9 One must draw back in order to leap further FRANCE
10 The sigh goes further than the shout SCOTLAND
11 Pride only goes the length one can spit REPUBLIC OF CONGO
12 A bad word whispered will echo a hundred miles CHINA
13 Every mile is two in winter ENGLAND
14 Don’t believe those who come from afar, but those who return from it SPAIN
15 Don’t run too far; you will have to come back the same distance FRANCE
16 Those who have to go ten miles must regard nine as only halfway GERMANY
17 A rich person’s sickness and a poor person’s pancake are smelt a long way off BELGIUM
85 NEARNESS
1 Don’t snuff the light too close, or you will burn your fingers DENMARK
2 The world is dark an inch ahead JAPAN
3 The higher the castle the nearer to the lightning RUSSIA
4 Eve is nearer to us than Adam SERBIA
5 In chess the fools are nearest the kings FRANCE
6 Far waters cannot quench near fires CHINA
7 Better do a good deed near at home than go far away to burn incense CHINA
8 Don’t hold the dime so near your eye that you can’t see the dollar USA
9 Pretty near ain’t quite USA
10 The nearer the bone, the sweeter the meat ENGLAND
11 A quarrel in a neighbouring house is refreshing INDIA
12 They that get the next best are not ill off SCOTLAND
13 Cleanliness is next to godliness ENGLAND
14 People scratch where they can reach KENYA
15 A fly before one’s own eye is bigger than an elephant in the next field CHINA
16 Sweetest the grass next to the ground WALES
86 LONG – SHORT
1 Among the ten fingers there are long and short CHINA
2 A long beard does not prevent a house going to bed hungry CAMEROON
3 Every little bird has a long beak NAMIBIA
4 Between two points one cannot draw more than one straight line DENMARK
5 There is bound to be a knot in a very long string KENYA
6 The longer the spoke, the greater the tire USA
7 However long the procession, it always returns to the church PHILIPPINES
8 A rich person’s sickness and a poor person’s pancake are smelt a long way off BELGIUM
9 There is no light burden on a long road CHINA
10 One must measure to know which is longer KOREA
11 If the string is long the kite will fly high CHINA
12 Stretch your legs according to the length of your bedspread LIBYA
13 Short hair is soon brushed GERMANY
14 Long hair – short brains MONTENEGRO
87 MIDDLE – ENDS
1 ‘Virtue in the middle,’ said the devil as he sat between two lawyers NORWAY
2 In the middle of the river do not change horses PERU
3 From the midst of the wood the hatchet gets its handle GERMANY
4 When