As thikke as motes in the sonne-beem.

Chaucer’s simile compares something innumerable or densely crowded to the tiny dust particles (“motes”) visible when sunlight cuts through a room (“the sonne-beem”). The image is domestic and immediately legible: motes appear countless, suspended and swirling, making “thikke” (thick) a vivid measure of abundance. In Middle English writing, such a comparison can serve either neutral description (sheer quantity) or moral coloring (e.g., a press of people, a swarm of thoughts, or a proliferation of small, irritating things). The phrase’s power lies in turning an everyday optical phenomenon into a concrete yardstick for excess.