on the tip of (one's) tongue
Almost able to be recalled. Her name is on the tip of my tongue. Just give me a minute, I'll remember it. I had the answer on the tip of my tongue, but couldn't think of it in time.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
on the tip of your tongue
1. If a remark or question is on the tip of your tongue, you want to say it, but stop yourself. `What do you make of it?' he said after a while. It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him he'd have to ask Charlie. But I said nothing.
2. If something such as a word, answer, or name is on the tip of your tongue, you know it and can almost remember it, but not quite. I know this, no, no, don't tell me, oh, it's on the tip of my tongue. What's the quickest way to remember a name that's on the tip of your tongue, but you just can't recall?
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012