Word.ws English Dictionary

wouldn't shout if a shark bit him

wouldn't shout if a shark bit him verb: to be frugal or miserly.

wouldn't shout if a shark bit him: to be frugal or miserly
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Verb

wouldn't shout if a shark bit him

  1. (Australia, idiomatic) To be frugal or miserly.
    • 'Yeah, he's as silly as a two-bob watch. And mean. He wouldn't shout [buy a drink] if a shark bit him.' 'Too right, he's got snakes in his pockets. Anyhow, how's the punting?' 'No luck, mate.[…]'1988, James Oram, G'day America: The Paul Hogan Story, Topsfield, Mass.: Salem House Publishers, →ISBN, page 25
    • 'Must be Martin's shout,' says one of them. The others roar with laughter. It's always Martin's shout but he's never there when you need him. 'Martin wouldn't shout if a shark bit him,' Harry explains to the tourist, filling up his glass.2007, Andrea Mayes, Shearwater, Camberwell, Vic.: Penguin Books Australia, →ISBN

Examples of wouldn't shout if a shark bit him in a sentence

  • "Wouldn't shout if a shark bit him", was the general opinion.2010, John Pullinger, The Last Jeep to Baclaran, Fremantle, W.A.: Vivid Publishing, →ISBN:
  • "Bastard wouldn't shout if a shark bit him," Dusty used to say, punning on "shout."2014 August 14, J. D. Frodsham, Fool's Mate, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 66:

Origin of wouldn't shout if a shark bit him

A play on shout, which can mean either “to scream” or “to buy drinks”.

Questions about wouldn't shout if a shark bit him

What does wouldn't shout if a shark bit him mean?
Wouldn't shout if a shark bit him means to be frugal or miserly.
How do you use wouldn't shout if a shark bit him in a sentence?
"Wouldn't shout if a shark bit him", was the general opinion.
What part of speech is wouldn't shout if a shark bit him?
Wouldn't shout if a shark bit him is a verb.

Words near wouldn't shout if a shark bit him in the dictionary

  1. wouldn't
  2. wouldn't be caught dead
  3. wouldn't be seen dead
  4. wouldn't harm a fly
  5. wouldn't say no
  6. wouldn't shout if a shark bit him
  7. wouldn't touch with yours
  8. wouldn't work in an iron lung
  9. wouldn't you know
  10. wouldn't you know it
  11. wouldn't you like to know?

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: wouldn't shout if a shark bit him (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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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-wouldn't shout if a shark bit him.ogg.

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