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Glite Dictionary
to shoot from the lip

to shoot from the lip

1 8.9
To speak quickly without thinking and risk upsetting people
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : hablar sin pensar
  • If you always shoot from the lip, you might offend someone without meaning to.

Examples

  • Maybe it is time for people to stop shooting from the lip here and listen to some alternatives.

    Blog text (33)

  • Mitt shoots from the lip and has a major disconnect between mouth and brain.

    Blog text (10)

  • During the heated debate, he tended to shoot from the lip, making statements that upset many listeners.

  • She realized that if she continued to shoot from the lip, she would damage her relationships with her colleagues.

Synonyms

to blurt out
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
42 3.9

Say something suddenly without thinking

is more tied to causing offense or misunderstanding than only sudden speech
to mouth off
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
28 8.3

To speak rudely and loudly to a person in charge

is about impulsive speech that may offend without intending disrespect
to shoot from the hip
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
6 8.1

To speak or act quickly without thinking carefully

focuses specifically on impulsive speech that can offend or cause misunderstanding
to shoot one's mouth off
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
5 8.0

To say things carelessly or proudly without thinking about the result

is mainly impulsive speech that may offend or be misunderstood, not boastful
to run off at the mouth
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
3 8.4

Talk too much and say things you should not

is about sudden impulsive remarks rather than long excessive talking
to shoot off at the mouth
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
1 9.4

Say things quickly without thinking that may hurt people or make you sorry later

is similar but more tied to causing misunderstanding rather than clear offense
to shot from the lip
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
9.9

To say something quickly without thinking

focuses more on causing misunderstanding rather than deliberate bluntness
to blunder out
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
7.4

To say something quickly and carelessly without thinking

is about speaking impulsively with a higher risk of offense or misunderstanding
to put one's foot in one's mouth
vsto shoot from the lip
  • Informal
8.2

To say something embarrassing without meaning to

is more general impulsive speech that often offends or causes misunderstanding

Antonyms

to mind one's language
  • Informal
1 7.2

Be careful not to use rude or hurtful words

Surface Forms

shoot from the lip infinitive
shooting from the lip present participle
shoots from the lip third person singular
shot from the lip past
shot from the lip past participle

Morphology

shoot + from + the + lip

The components give partial clues: 'shoot' can metaphorically map to emitting something quickly and 'lip' (in the given sense) points to impudent speech, so a learner could infer a sense of rapid or cheeky utterance. However the specific idiomatic meaning 'to speak impulsively or offensively' depends on a metaphorical extension and a relatively rare formulation, so it is not fully predictable for a B1 learner who only knows the individual words.

Etymology

The idiom shoot from the lip may come from the image of words that shoot quickly from your lip, like a sudden shot out of the mouth. That's why it means 'to speak without thinking' and often offend or hurt people.