never give advice unless asked
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Refain from offering guidance unless someone requests it
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Sources & notes
Listed on Wikipedia “List of proverbial phrases” (CC BY-SA 4.0, 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.
Common questions
What does “never give advice unless asked” mean?
Refain from offering guidance unless someone requests it
Is “never give advice unless asked” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.