[General] button one’s lip

[vil]

Dear teachers,

Would you tell me whether I am right about my interpretation of the expression in bold in the following sentence?
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[FONT=&quot]They told him to button his lip if he didn’t want trouble. [/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]button one’s lip = hold one’s tongue[/FONT]
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Thanks for your efforts.

Regards,

V

 

[mykwyner]

Yes, it means stop talking.

 

[BobK]

:up: 'Button your lip' is (nearly?) always used either in the imperative or (as here) in a reported command. If you want to say something but think better of it you 'bite your tongue'.

b