to hold one's tongue
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To keep silence. In Coverdale's Bible (1535), where the Authorized Version has ''But Jesus held his peace" (Matt. xxvi, 63) the reading is "Jesus helde his tonge.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to hold one's tongue” mean?
To keep silence. In Coverdale's Bible (1535), where the Authorized Version has ''But Jesus held his peace" (Matt. xxvi, 63) the reading is "Jesus helde his tonge.
Is “to hold one's tongue” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.