bite one's tongue | Idiomator

Meaning: (intransitive,idiomatic)To resist the urge tospeak out, especially in order to avoid saying somethinginappropriateor likely to cause adispute.Synonym:bite one's lip2011, Mike Pappas,Growing Up the Greek Way in the Big Apple, page103:She wanted to go see a movie calledGigi, which I was not too thrilled about. But being a gentleman, Ibit my tongueand said, “Okay.”2013,Katy Perry,Roar:I used tobite my tongueand hold my breath / Scared to rock the boat and make a mess.2020June 23,John Bolton,The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, New York, N.Y.:Simon & Schuster,→ISBN, page305:[…]my automatictongue-bitingmechanism kicked in just in time.2021August 13,Gayle, Sara Davis, David Pittenger, “abcdefu”, inA Study of the Human Experience Volume One‎[1], performed by Gayle:I swear I meant to mean the best when it ended / Even try tobite my tonguewhen you start shit / Now you're texting all my friends, asking questions / They never even liked you in the first place

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