bite one's lip
verb1
Idiomatic To forcibly prevent oneself from speaking, especially in order to avoid saying something inappropriate or likely to cause a dispute.
- Buckingham bit his lip, for he saw the introduction of Lady Derby was likely to confuse and embroil every preparation which he had arranged for his defence; […]1822, [Walter Scott], chapter XIII, in Peveril of the Peak. […], volume IV, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 304:
- He broke off and bit his lip, feeling that he had better subdue the rising anger in his voice.1922, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, “(please specify the page)”, in Tales of the Jazz Age, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC:
- Synonyms
- bite one's tongue