mince matters

Idioms and Phrases

Also, mince words . Moderate or restrain one's language to be polite or avoid giving offense. Today these phrases are nearly always put negatively, as in Not to mince matters, I feel he should resign , or Don't mince words—say what you mean . The usage dates from the mid-1500s and transfers cutting something such as meat into small pieces to minimizing the harsh impact of words.