all mouth and trousers
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English[edit]
Alternative forms[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From mouth, meaning "talk" rather than action, and trousers, presumably at the time of origin, a reference to masculinity, either as trousers as a male item of clothing, or a reference to the genitals.
Pronunciation[edit]
Audio (AU) (file)
Adjective[edit]
all mouth and trousers (not comparable)
- (British, idiomatic) Superficial, engaging in empty, boastful talk, but not of real substance.
- Synonyms: (vulgar) all fart and no shit, all fart and no poo
Translations[edit]
superficial
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See also[edit]
References[edit]
- Michael Quinion (2004) “All mouth and trousers”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.