Speak little, do much
Meaning: Let your actions speak louder than your words; promise less and deliver more.
Origin: From Benjamin Franklin's almanac Poor Richard Improved for 1755, where "Speak little, do much" appears among the year's maxims. Many of Poor Richard's sayings were adapted from older proverbs, and this one's earlier history is untraced.
Equivalents in French, Spanish, and Japanese
- French: Peu dire, beaucoup faire (literally: Say little, do much)
- Spanish: Habla poco, haz mucho (literally: Speak little, do much)
- Japanese: 言葉は少なく、行いは多く (Kotoba wa sukunaku, okonai wa ōku) (literally: Fewer words, more deeds)
More proverbs about Communication
- The louder the thunder, the less the rain — The most dramatic announcements often yield the least substance.
- Do what I say, not what I do — Hypocrisy acknowledged: the speaker recognizes their own failures but knows the correct p…
- It's not what you say but how you say it — Tone and delivery shape message impact more powerfully than words alone.
- Live by the sword, die by the sword — Violence begets violence; those who choose aggressive means should expect equally brutal…
- No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public — Mass audiences reward simplicity over substance, making mediocrity perpetually profitable.
- As you make your bed so you must lie on it. — Your choices about how you arrange your life will directly determine the comfort or disco…
From our idioms
- get a kick out of something — to enjoy something greatly; to find something amusing.
- sharp as a tack — intelligent; quick-witted; keen-minded.
- run it up the flagpole — to test an idea; to present something for approval or feedback.