Also: Straight from the horse’s mouth
Meaning of Idiom ‘From the Horse’s Mouth’
When information comes from the horse’s mouth it comes from the best authority or most dependable source, especially when the information comes directly from the person whom the information concerns or who has direct personal knowledge of the situation. 1Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.,2Ayto, John. Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms. Oxford: Oxford U, 2010.,3McIntosh, Colin. Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Cambridge University Press, 2013.
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Sentence Examples
“Trust me, I got the story straight from the horse’s mouth.”
“Genine and Robby are going to break up,” said Sarah. “Are you sure?” asked Vicky. “Totally sure. I got it straight from the horse’s mouth. Genine told me herself.”
Origin
Used since at least the early 1700’s.
Although this idiom is not connected to “looking a gift horse in the mouth” it probably alludes to the notion that a horse’s quality can be assessed by looking at its teeth. The idiom itself may be related to horse racing and “inside betting” where individuals would get infallible tips on horses from those closest to the horse, such as trainers or even stable-boys: Individuals who were close enough to the horse to look in its mouth. Thus, the information was coming “straight from the horse’s mouth,” as it were.
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More From Idioms
- From Your Lips to God’s Ears
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- From the Ground Up
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More Mouth Idioms
- Watch Your Mouth
- Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
- Loudmouth, be a
- Big Mouth, have a
- Give Someone a Mouthful