ProverbCommunication
Spanish origin
Spanish originPor la boca muere el pez
Meaning: Talking too much gets people into trouble.
Literally: The fish dies by its mouth
Example: “Presumió en redes de lo que había hecho y lo pillaron. Por la boca muere el pez.” — He boasted online about what he'd done and got caught: loose lips sink ships.
Equivalents in English, French, Japanese, Italian, Portuguese, and 3 more languages
English: Better that the feet slip than the tongue.
French: Mieux vaut glisser du pied que de la langue (literally: Better a slip of the foot than of the tongue)
Japanese: 口は災いの元 (Kuchi wa wazawai no moto) (literally: The mouth is the source of calamity)
Italian: Ne uccide più la lingua che la spada (literally: The tongue kills more than the sword)
Portuguese: Pela boca morre o peixe (literally: The fish dies by its mouth)
Dutch: Beter met de voet dan met de tong te struikelen (literally: Better to stumble with the foot than with the tongue)
Russian: Язык мой — враг мой (Yazyk moy — vrag moy) (literally: My tongue is my enemy)
Chinese: 祸从口出 (Huò cóng kǒu chū) (literally: Disaster comes out of the mouth)
Origin: A fish is caught because it bites the hook; a person is caught by what comes out of their mouth.
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