Word.ws English Dictionary

it's not what you say but how you say it

it's not what you say but how you say it proverb: the tone and delivery of communication are at least as important as the message itself.

Proverb

it's not what you say but how you say it

  1. The tone and delivery of communication are at least as important as the message itself.
    • Say the punch line loud and clear. You can even increase your volume and really emphasize the last word. Sometimes it's not what you say but how you say it.2018, Alyson Connolly, Public Speaking Skills For Dummies

Questions about it's not what you say but how you say it

What does it's not what you say but how you say it mean?
It's not what you say but how you say it means the tone and delivery of communication are at least as important as the message itself.
What part of speech is it's not what you say but how you say it?
It's not what you say but how you say it is a proverb.

Words near it's not what you say but how you say it in the dictionary

  1. it's not the meat, it's the motion
  2. it's not the size of the ship, it's the motion of the ocean
  3. it's not the whistle that pulls the train
  4. it's not what you know but who you know
  5. it's not what you know but whom you know
  6. it's not what you say but how you say it
  7. it's not you, it's me
  8. it's nothing
  9. it's on
  10. it's only a matter of time
  11. it's only a question of time

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: it's not what you say but how you say it (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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