by word of mouth

by word of mouth

Through the verbal sharing of information. A: "How did you hear about our bakery?" B: "Oh, by word of mouth. My dad told me about it." We don't have the budget for a big marketing campaign, so we'll just have to hope that buzz about our shop gets spread by word of mouth.

See also: by, mouth, of, word

by word of mouth

by speaking rather than writing. I learned about it by word of mouth. I need it in writing. I don't trust things I hear about by word of mouth.

See also: by, mouth, of, word

word of mouth, by

Orally, by one person telling another, as in They don't advertise; they get all their customers by word of mouth. [Mid-1500s]

See also: by, of, word

by ˌword of ˈmouth

in spoken, not written, words: The news spread by word of mouth.

‘By word of mouse’ (= a computer mouse) is a humorous version of this that refers to communication by email, etc.

See also: by, mouth, of, word