The idiom ‘you said a mouthful‘ might easily be confused with ‘a mouthful‘ used figuratively. The idiom ‘a mouthful,’ when used alone, refers to words or names that are long and difficult to say or pronounce. If we say, “That’s a mouthful,” we mean “That’s difficult to say or pronounce.” The phrase ‘you said a mouthful’ has a different meaning and has nothing to do with how difficult something is to say.
Want to see more videos from Idioms.Online? Subscribe to our YouTube channel!
Meaning of Idiom ‘You Said a Mouthful’
To say a mouthful means to say a great deal or to say something very important. When someone says “You said a mouthful” they mean “you said something very important or meaningful.”
Less often, a long statement. 1, 2
Although the precise meaning of this idiom is different than a similar idiom you can say that again, it is often used in a similar way, to express complete agreement. It is also used to commend someone for their insight.
Examples Of Use
“When you said this was going to be our biggest year yet, you said a mouthful. Business is booming!”
“Richard is a very talented actor,” said Rose. “You said a mouthful,” said Arthur. “He’s going to be famous!”
Origin
This idiom alludes figuratively to the maximum amount of food a mouth can hold. It has been used since the late 1700’s. 3,4
More Idioms Starting with Y
More Body Part Idioms
- Go Belly Up
- Stand On Someone’s Shoulders
- In One’s Face
- Give Someone the Cold Shoulder
- Know Something Like the Back Of One’s Hand
- Out of the Corner of One’s Eye
- Work One’s Fingers To the Bone
More Mouth Idioms
- Watch Your Mouth
- Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is
- Loudmouth, be a
- Big Mouth, have a
- Give Someone a Mouthful
More Say Idioms
More You Idioms
- You Snooze, You Lose
- You Bet
- You Can’t Miss It
- You Can Say That Again
- You Have Made Your Bed and Must Lie In It
- Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms]. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.
- Spears, Richard A. McGraw-Hill’s American Idioms Dictionary. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2008.
- Pare, May. Body Idioms and More: For Learners of English. United States?: Mayuree Pare, 2005.
- Ammer, Christine. American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms]. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013.