Word.ws English Dictionary

talk softly and carry a big stick

talk softly and carry a big stick is the alternative form of speak softly and carry a big stick.

Meaning of speak softly and carry a big stick

Proverb

speak softly and carry a big stick

  1. Do not boast or utter verbal threats, but do make others aware that you are prepared to use physical or military force if necessary.
    • There is a homely old adage which runs: "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far."1903 April 3, Theodore Roosevelt, President Roosevelt's Speech on the Monroe Doctrine," Arizona Journal-Miner, p. 4 (retrieved 19 Dec 2011)

Questions about talk softly and carry a big stick

What is talk softly and carry a big stick the alternative form of?
Talk softly and carry a big stick is the alternative form of speak softly and carry a big stick.

Words near talk softly and carry a big stick in the dictionary

  1. talk shop
  2. talk shops
  3. talk show
  4. talk shows
  5. talk smack
  6. talk softly and carry a big stick
  7. talk someone under the table
  8. talk someone's arm off
  9. talk someone's ear off
  10. talk someone's head off
  11. talk someone's leg off

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: talk softly and carry a big stick (page history and authors); speak softly and carry a big stick (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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