אֲפִלּוּ כַּזַּיִת, וְלוּ כַּזַּיִת, כַּזַּיִת

ביטוי (אנגלית)

Even as big as an olive-size/something small (the size of an olive)

הגדרה (אנגלית)

By extension: even a very little, even a tiny amount of... 'Kezayit' is an ancient unit of measurement, meaning the weight or size of an olive. Today, it is commonly considered as half a matzah or half an egg, though different opinions exist regarding its exact measure.

("An animal in danger should not be slaughtered unless there is time in the day to eat from it an olive-size piece roasted. Rabbi Akiva says: even as small as an olive" – Beitzah 3:3. Also: "A positive commandment from the Torah to bless after eating food... and by rabbinic decree, even if he ate an olive-size piece, he blesses afterwards" – Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Book of Love, Laws of Blessings, Chapter 1:1, 245. And: "His empty stomach demands its food... and in his hand there is not even an olive-size piece of bread!" – Mendele Mokher Sefarim, The Travels of Benjamin the Third, H. Laz. Also: "In the dish that is all soup, there is only an olive-sized piece of meat just to please the eyes" – Shalom Aleichem, Dairy Delicacies, Pah. And: "The woman slapped her head and said, Woe, what can be given to him, for in our house there is not even an olive-size piece of bread" – Agnon, These and Those, The Miller and the Grinder, 263)