protest too much
To insist so passionately about something that people suspect the opposite of what one is saying.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“He protests too much about not liking her.”
“She keeps claiming she does not want the promotion, but she protests too much.”
“By insisting so vehemently that he had no interest in the inheritance, he only convinced the family that he protested too much.”
Shortened from the lady doth protest too much.
- 01
much ado about nothing
A lot of fuss or bother about something trivial.
- 02
much of a muchness
Of two or more things, having little difference of any significance between them.
- 03
not much of anything
Very little; not a lot.
- 04
so much for
An expression of dismissiveness, disappointment, disregard, or resignation; something said upon rejecting, giving up on, quitting, or disposing of something.
Last updated August 10, 2026