Small–small

Small–small is an expression that comes in very handy. It can mean most anything. For example, when someone asks you “how de bodi?” you may reply small-small, which means you’re doing fine but not that fine. If someone asks you if you know how to speak Krio, you can also respond with the small-small (especially after you’ve studied this phrasebook). When driving around Freetown, you might want to go small-small lest you smash into the back of a poda-poda or run down a chicken or goat. If someone asks you “do you want to go out on a bender tonight?” you might also reply small-small if you fear too much of a hangover. Small-small pikin are pictured plenty-plenty in my gallery.

Similar to small-small, there are also the expressions plenty-plenty, done-done, beacoup-beacoup, fast-fast, and fine-fine. In Krio, do to the lack of adjectives and adverbs, the existing ones tend to be doubled to indicate degree. (See belly-belly tumba.)