save your breath

S

save your breath (idiom)
/seɪv jɔːr brɛθ/

Variants

• don’t waste your breath
• save one’s breath
• don’t bother saying

Meanings

• To avoid wasting words on something that will not produce results.
• Avoid explaining or advising someone when it has no effect.
• It is useless talking to someone who does not listen.
• Avoid wasting words on someone who will not listen.
• Refrain from arguing or speaking about something when it is unlikely to have an effect.

Synonyms: useless; futile; pointless; vain; fruitless.

Example Sentences

1. She wanted to persuade him, but save your breath—he’d already made up his mind.
2. You can don’t waste your breath arguing with Tom; he’s not listening.
3. The teacher sighed and told her, save one’s breath—the students were distracted.
4. I tried to explain, but honestly, don’t bother saying anything to someone who isn’t interested.

Origin and History

Culinary Origins: “Save Your Breath to Cool Your Broth”

The earliest form of the idiom appears as a literal admonition: “save your breath to cool your broth” (or porridge). This expression evokes a domestic image—blowing on hot food—and metaphorically suggests conserving effort for more useful tasks. Such phrasing was already in circulation by the 17th century.

Earliest Printed Evidence

A notable early attestation occurs in Thomas Shepard’s The Sincere Convert (1640s), which includes the line: “I pray you save your breath to cool your broth.” This confirms the idiom’s presence in mid-17th-century English print culture.

Country of Origin

The idiom originated within the English-speaking world, particularly in Britain. Its appearance in London-printed texts and subsequent transmission to colonial New England suggests a distinctly anglophone lineage, with regional variants in Scots and rural English speech contributing to its preservation.

Semantic Shift and Lexicalization

By the 18th century, the phrase had undergone semantic bleaching and abbreviation. The shortened form “save your breath” emerged with a fully figurative meaning: “do not waste words.” Lexicographic sources trace this transition from literal imagery to idiomatic usage.

Interpretive Frameworks and Folkloric Variants

Several interpretive models help explain the idiom’s evolution:

• Culinary metaphor: The most direct and historically attested origin.
• Rhetorical economy: Advising speakers to conserve verbal effort.
• Vitalist metaphor: Associating breath with life force and strength.
• Regional transmission: Scots and rural English variants sustained the extended form.

While the culinary and rhetorical explanations dominate, folkloric and regional contributions remain relevant to its cultural embedding.

Later Circulation and Idiomatic Fixation

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, the idiom gained traction in both literary and colloquial usage. By the 20th century, save your breath had become a fixed expression in English, with regional variants continuing to coexist alongside the standardized form.

Food

Last update: August 13, 2025 9:09 AM