Meaning of Put your foot in your mouth
To say or do something that offends, upsets or embarrasses someone else.
The thing you said (or did) usually gets you into trouble, especially if you hadn’t thought carefully before speaking or doing it.
You embarrass yourself by saying something wrong or inappropriate, something that you should not have said openly.
Sometimes it can be an insensitive or tactless remark that you later regret saying.
Occasionally you didn’t realize that other people were listening to what you were saying and they may have found your comment or remark offensive or embarrassing.
In the end, whatever you said has caused an embarrassing or awkward situation.
You can also use this idiom when someone else does this. For example:
- He put his foot in his mouth
- She put her foot in her mouth etc.
This expression isn’t used in plural (they, we etc).
Stick your foot in your mouth
Sometimes people use Stick instead of Put.
- He just stuck his foot in his mouth.
- Make sure you don’t stick your foot in your mouth.
Examples of Putting your foot in your mouth.
A: Who is that smelly old lady over there?
B: My mother!
A: Oops! I think I just put my foot in my mouth.
You really put your foot in your mouth by mentioning the graduation party to Mike when he hasn’t been invited.
(Seeing Mary is a little larger than normal)
John: So, when is the baby due?
Mary: I’m not pregnant!
(John just put his foot in his mouth)
Have you ever put your foot in your mouth? When? What happened?
