Loose Lips Sink Ships

 

Hi there and welcome to this week’s Words and Their Stories!

On today’s show we will talk about an idiom of warning. And it is not very easy to say: Loose lips sink ships.

This idiom began during World War II as a slogan used by the United States Office of War Information. It was part of a propaganda campaign. So, the slogan “loose lips sink ships” was printed on posters and hung in many public places, such as schools and churches.

This wartime expression warned people in the military as well as ordinary citizens to watch what they say. Unguarded talk may give useful information to the enemy.

Part of the propaganda campaign warned that simply revealing the location of a loved one on a ship could be dangerous. That information could be passed on to the enemy or to a spy. The posters show in detail a ship being attacked and soldiers being killed.

This idiom still may not make sense to you. So, let’s break it down. Something “loose” moves easily. So, loose lips move freely and release a lot of words -- most likely in a careless way. If you speak carelessly (that’s the “loose lips” part) about private or sensitive information, someone could hear and use it to damage or ruin something important (a “sinking ship” is pretty bad).

The message: Be careful when you speak. Watch what you say. Beware of spies. And during war, you never know who is a spy. That is the nature of spying.

One of the most famous – or maybe I should say infamous¹ – spies in history was the Dutch dancer Mata Hari. Well, Mata Hari was the name she used when she performed as a dancer in Paris in the early 1900s.

The online Encyclopedia² Britannica explains that Mata Hari was romantically linked to a number of men. Many of them were military officers around the time of World War I. Both Germany and France must have believed some of those officers would have loose lips around this beautiful woman, because the two countries sought to get secret information from her.

But when French officials suspected she was spying for Germany, they arrested her. She was tried and found guilty of supplying Germany with information. She was shot by firing squad³ on October 15, 1917.

It is unlikely that Mata Hari was responsible for sinking any ships. And she may not have been a spy. Some documents reportedly prove her innocence⁴. Although her relatives may find that evidence to be cold comfort -- after all, her reputation remains⁵ damaged. We still use the name “Mata Hari” to describe a devious⁶ woman who uses her sexual appeal to get men to spill their secrets.

Now, let’s go back to loose lips sinking ships. Keep in mind that you do not have to be in the middle of a war to use that idiom.

For example, let’s say you are working on a project at work with a small team of people. Until you are ready to launch the secret product it is best that no one else knows. So, you can warn your teammates that “loose lips sink ships.” If they want the project to be successful, they should keep the details to themselves.

And that’s the end of this Words and Their Stories. Until next time … I’m Anna Matteo.

Be careful what you say,

Loose talk could sink this ship

Well the way that I am, I was weak as a lamb,

See it on my shaky lip

Words in This Story

idiom – n. an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its separate words but that has a separate meaning of its own

slogan – n. a brief attention-getting phrase used in advertising⁷ or promotion⁸

propaganda – n. an organized spreading of ideas

synonym⁹ – n. a word that has the same meaning as another word in the same language

treason – n. the crime of trying to overthrow¹⁰ your country's government or of helping¹¹ your country's enemies during war : treasonous – adj.

cold comfort – n. quite limited sympathy, consolation¹², or encouragement

reputation – n. the common opinion that people have about someone or something : the way in which people think of someone or something

devious – adj. willing to lie and trick people in order to get what is wanted

spill – v. to tell secret or hidden information

1 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

2 encyclopedia   

n.百科全书

参考例句：

• The encyclopedia fell to the floor with a thud.那本百科全书砰的一声掉到地上。
• Geoff is a walking encyclopedia.He knows about everything.杰夫是个活百科全书，他什么都懂。

3 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

4 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 devious   

adj.不坦率的，狡猾的；迂回的，曲折的

参考例句：

• Susan is a devious person and we can't depend on her.苏姗是个狡猾的人，我们不能依赖她。
• He is a man who achieves success by devious means.他这个人通过不正当手段获取成功。

7 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

8 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

9 synonym   

n.同义词，换喻词

参考例句：

• Zhuge Liang is a synonym for wisdom in folklore.诸葛亮在民间传说中成了智慧的代名词。
• The term 'industrial democracy' is often used as a synonym for worker participation. “工业民主”这个词常被用作“工人参与”的同义词。

10 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

11 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

12 consolation   

n.安慰，慰问

参考例句：

• The children were a great consolation to me at that time.那时孩子们成了我的莫大安慰。
• This news was of little consolation to us.这个消息对我们来说没有什么安慰。