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Shona Definition
Vanhu vasingazivi mugarire womunhu vanomutya nokumuzeza. Ishe anotyiwa chose navanhu vanogara kure naye asi vaya vari mumusha make vanotamba naye vachiita jee. Zvinhu zvizhinji tinongozvityira kure tisina kumbozviidza.
English Translation
What looks like horns on an owl is only feathers. People who do not know a figure of authority keep a nervous distance from him while those who live beside him joke freely with him, and dangers that loom large from afar often turn out not to exist once you get close.
Cultural Context
“Used when someone is exaggerating the risk of an undertaking, or holding back in awe of a person they have never actually dealt with.”
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This is a variant of
Chibwe chiremera chavari kure / vari pedyo vanotamba nachoA stone seems heavy to those at a distance from it, while those standing close by toss it about in play.