English · Idiom Candidate

gift of the gab

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

The ability to speak fluently and persuasively

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

khả năng nói lưu loát và thuyết phục

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Literally: natural talent for talking

Where it’s used: Used Widespread English

Examples

He has the gift of the gab and can talk his way out of any situation

AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-30; pending editor spot-check.

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A facility of speech.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Khả năng nói chuyện

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Era: ca. 1811 (Georgian)

Where it’s used: Origin British & Irish English

Sources & notes

Historical definition reproduced from Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue (1811 edition, public domain; Project Gutenberg #5402, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.

Equivalents & related

Near equivalent mồm mép (noun) gift of the gab, ability to speak readily and glibly Tiếng Việt Near equivalent mồm mép tép nhảy (adjective) having the gift of the gab, speaking a lot and glibly Tiếng Việt

Topics: Historical slang (1800s)

Common questions

What does “gift of the gab” mean?

The ability to speak fluently and persuasively Literally: natural talent for talking

Is “gift of the gab” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

What is the closest equivalent?

“mồm mép” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.