What does ‘get something off your chest’ mean?
To “get something off your chest” means to confess or vent something troubling. A 19th-century idiom; the image is of a weight lifted from the heart.
Origin
- A 19th-century idiom; the image is of a weight lifted from the heart.
How to use it
- Common invitation to open up.
- Example: You'll feel better once you get it off your chest.
Source:
Last verified: 2026-07-18
- Definitions and origins are drawn from public-domain reference works, primarily Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), with modern usage notes clearly marked.