Acqua in bocca
Meaning: Keep it secret; don't tell anyone.
Language: Italian
Literally: Water in the mouth
Category: Food & Drink
Origin: According to Florentine lexicographer Pirro Giacchi's 1878 Dizionario del vernacolo fiorentino, a devout but notoriously gossiping and sharp-tongued woman confessed her habit of speaking ill of others and asked her priest for help resisting the temptation. He gave her a small bottle of well water and told her to place a few drops in her mouth every time she felt the urge to gossip rising — a discreet, practical trick that worked simply because it's physically impossible to speak clearly with your mouth full of water. No firm historical documentation confirms this specific story, but the image has an obvious, universal logic that needed little further explanation to spread: keeping water in your mouth is a simple, effective way of keeping your mouth shut about anything you've been asked to keep quiet.
More idioms — Food & Drink
- 눈에 콩깍지가 씌다 (nun-e kongkkakjiga sseuida) — To be blinded by love.
- 식은 죽 먹기 (Sigeun juk meokgi) — A piece of cake; very easy to do.
- Не вешай лапшу на уши (Ne veshay lapshu na ushi) — Don't lie to me; stop trying to deceive me.
- Att glida in på en räkmacka — To have things handed to you without effort.
- Att ha rent mjöl i påsen — To have a clean conscience; nothing to hide.
- Descascar o abacaxi — To solve a very difficult, thorny problem.
More Italian idioms
- Essere al verde — To be broke; to have no money left.
- avere la coda di paglia — Feel guilty about something because you're afraid of being discovered or criticized.
- mangiare la foglia — Understand someone's hidden intentions or see through their deception immediately.
- avere un diavolo per capello — Be extremely angry or agitated, ready to argue with anyone about anything.
- essere un osso duro — Be a difficult, stubborn person who is challenging to deal with or influence.
- piangere sul latte versato — Waste time regretting something that cannot be changed or undone.