- English translation
No mouth was ever broken by another mouth.
- Literal wording
A mouth does not break a mouth.
- Meaning and lesson
The proverb claims that a verbal fight, however sharp, cannot defeat the other side. Here 'mouth' stands for speech, not physical injury: insults and boasts bounce between speakers without settling anything, so a dispute carried on only through talk drags on with no winner.
It also carries a practical lesson: whoever wants to resolve a conflict must move beyond words and take some real step. This push toward action does not endorse violence. The point is that talking louder or more harshly changes nothing, and only concrete steps can bring the matter to a close.
- When it is used
Suitable when two parties keep trading insults or threats without result. A speaker can use it to urge someone to stop arguing and take concrete steps, or to dismiss a loud opponent whose words carry no real consequence.
- Register
- colloquial
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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