to keep quiet when one would rather speak
used when telling people not to speak
When she said that she was very hardworking I had to hold my tongue.
I often have to hold my tongue when he tells me how good he is at football. I know that he can hardly kick.
You better hold your tongue while we are in the museum, young man!
You need to hold your tongue while the principal is talking during assemble today.
I had to hold my tongue in order to keep the peace at our family gathering.
There is no origin for this idiom
Was this page helpful?
definition
Common phrase that has a specific meaning.