«يِخَافْ مِنِ الْخُنْفِسَهْ، وِيِلْعَبْ بِالتِّعْبَانْ»

The saying mocks a backward sense of danger. The person it describes jumps in alarm at a beetle, a harmless creature, while casually amusing himself with a snake, which can kill. The two animals simply stand for the harmless and the truly dangerous; the point lies in the reversal, not in any belief about them.

More broadly, it marks surprise or reproach toward anyone whose worries are badly calibrated. Such a person frets over small, harmless matters but treats serious risks lightly, perhaps from ignorance, perhaps from carelessness. The proverb invites listeners to notice the absurdity and to ask whether their own anxieties are aimed at the right targets.

Use it to express wry amazement at someone who panics over trivial things yet handles real danger carelessly. It suits informal talk, teasing, or mild criticism of misplaced caution, and works best when the gap between the two attitudes is obvious.