Meaning & Analysis
The phrase is used to compare something’s size—either very small or, less commonly, surprisingly large—to that of a pea, a familiar, easily visualized object.
Insights
Precision in Comparison
The proverb employs the pea as a concrete standard for expressing relative size, whether minimal or unexpectedly substantial, giving specificity to otherwise vague measurements.
Everyday Imagery
By invoking a common foodstuff, the phrase grounds description in ordinary experience, making it vivid, accessible, and relatable.
Universality of Measurement
Natural objects like peas have long served as informal units of measure in English and many other languages, reflecting the human tendency to anchor abstract qualities (size, distance) in tangible reference points.
Flexibility and Familiarity
The versatility of the phrase (small or big) and its presence in both literal and figurative contexts indicate the enduring cultural role of the pea as a symbol of comparison—employed by writers and speakers from Jonson and Fletcher to everyday speech.
Rhetorical Devices
Simile
The phrase is a classic simile, explicitly likening the subject’s size to that of a pea for clarity and force.
Colloquialism
Its simplicity and informality lend a conversational tone, making the comparison easily understood and widely usable.
Imagery
The vivid mental picture of a pea enhances memorability and communication, making abstract descriptions concrete.
Transcription
Quotations
A bit of Marmalade No bigger than a Pease.
[I] clered my self by the way, through rogging of the coatch, of 2 stones .. the least as bigg as a pease.
Ile clense him with a pill (as small as a pease).
Till your Grain be as big as a small Pease.
A little vegetable bud . . not so big oftentimes as a pea.
Related Proverbs
Original Scan
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