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small voice

small voice

1 6.3
An inner feeling that quietly tells you right from wrong
  • noun
translation icon : voz interior
  • A small voice within me told me I had tried my best to help people realize with words what we should do, but not enough are listening.
  • the small voice said
  • hears the small voice

And then listen to your still small voice and you will get an answer.

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Examples

  • And then listen to your still small voice and you will get an answer.

  • During difficult decisions, I try to listen to that small voice guiding my conscience.

  • But it's like that still small voice inside.

  • Is there ever a small voice in the back of your head that says, you know what?

  • God speaks to every one of us with His "still small voice."

    Blog text (26)
  • Many times people refuse to listen to the still small voice inside them telling the difference between right and wrong, so that they can go with whatever they are feeling.

    Blog text (26)
  • Yesterday, a small voice inside J.B. had told him to let bygones be bygones.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Often, I ignore the small voice inside me that encourages me to do the right thing.

  • Whenever I feel uncertain, a small voice whispers to trust my instincts.

Synonyms

conscience
vssmall voice
632 4.6

An inner feeling that tells you what is right or wrong and makes you feel guilty

is quieter and more imageable as a guiding whisper rather than the whole faculty
voice of conscience
vssmall voice
1 6.3

An inner feeling that tells you if something is right or wrong

is gentler and more personal than the general moral faculty
wee small voice
vssmall voice
  • UK
9.1

A quiet inner feeling that tells you when something is wrong

is the same inner guide but in shorter, less playful wording

How Strong

conviction
258 4.5
conscience
632 4.6
small voice
1 6.3

Surface Forms

small voice singular
small voices plural

Morphology

small + voice

The phrase combines literal meanings ('small' = quiet/soft, 'voice' = a speaking sound) but its use to mean an inner conscience is a metaphorical extension rather than a straightforward composition. Similar 'inner/little voice' metaphors exist in many languages, so the relation is partly obvious but not fully predictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

The phrase small voice comes from the simple image of a quiet whisper inside your head, a small voice that tells you what is right or wrong. That's why it means the 'inner feeling' or 'conscience' that quietly guides or warns you.