straight from the horse's mouth

English

Etymology

This idiom comes from British horse-racing circles, likely because the presumed ideal source for racing tips would be the horse rather than spectators or riders.

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Adverb

straight from the horse's mouth (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) Directly from the source; firsthand.

   If you don't believe me, go talk to him and hear it straight from the horse's mouth. It's true.

Usage notes

• Modifies verbs like "hear" and "get"

Translations

firsthand

• Finnish: suoraan hevosen suusta
• French: de première main (fr)
• German: aus erster Hand (literally: from the first hand)
• Icelandic: (from the first hand) frá fyrstu hendi, (without an intermediary) milliliðalaust
• Italian: di prima mano, alla fonte
• Portuguese: em primeira mão, direto da fonte
• Russian: из пе́рвых рук (ru) (iz pérvyx ruk, literally “from the first hands”)

Adjective

straight from the horse's mouth (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) firsthand; direct; from the source.

   This is straight from the horse's mouth.

Translations

from the source

• Finnish: suoraan hevosen suusta (adverb)
• French: de première main (fr)
• German: aus erster Hand (literally: from the first hand)
• Icelandic: (from the first hand) frá fyrstu hendi, (without an intermediary) milliliðalaust
• Italian: alla fonte

References

• Gary Martin (1997–) “Straight from the horse's mouth”, in The Phrase Finder, retrieved 26 February 2017.