set tongues (a-)wagging
set tongues (a-)wagging
To be a source of gossip or idle speculation. Just when the dust of his previous scandal had begun to settle, the governor committed a new faux pas to set tongues a-wagging across the country. Being such a media celebrity means that anything one does, no matter how banal, is enough to set tongues wagging.
set tongues (a)wagging
Fig. to cause people to start gossiping. The affair between the boss and her accountant set tongues a wagging. If you don't get the lawn mowed soon, you will set tongues wagging in the neighborhood.
set tongues wagging
If something that you do or say sets tongues wagging, it makes people talk about you. The pop singer set tongues wagging by arriving with a mystery man. Note: You can also say that something starts tongues wagging or that tongues start wagging. Tongues started wagging when Claudia moved from her native Germany to Monaco earlier this year. Note: If people are talking about someone, you can say tongues are wagging. They spent an evening together at his Knightsbridge flat. He said they played cards but added: `No doubt tongues will be wagging.'