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The Kitchen Table

Phrase of the day 1/7

jim_1 (Zone 5B)

5 years ago

Little pitchers have big ears

This phrase, meaning that even small children may overhear and understand conversations not intended for them, is very old. Heywood (1546) gives it this way: “Avoid your children; small pitchers have wide ears.” The allusion is to the fact that the handle of a pitcher does slightly resemble the human ear.

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Comments (5)

salonva
5 years ago
Just saying thank you for doing this. I very much enjoy it each day , even if I rarely comment.
stacey_mb
5 years ago
Thank you!
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Olychick
5 years ago
Interesting! I always heard the term as "Little pictures have big ears" meaning that a silent child in the background is listening to everything.
Lars
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
I've never trusted small children, especially when I was a child myself.
Elmer J Fudd
5 years ago
You're right, lars. Kids have no filters nor inhibitions, it's good and bad. They can unfortunately repeat things to the wrong people at the wrong times.

Never trust small children or smiling dogs.

(Sorry, I couldn't not say that)

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