Take It With A Grain of Salt: Definition, Origin & Useful Examples

Take it with a grain of salt meaning! Learn the definition, its origin and synonyms list of this idiom with many useful example sentences & ESL infographic.

Table of Contents

Take It With A Grain of Salt | Meaning

What Does “Take It With A Grain of Salt” Mean?

(Take with a) grain of salt or with a grain of salt is a common idiom of the English language which means to accept what someone says but not take it too seriously, don’t exactly believe what they say to be correct or not to interpret something literally.
Take with a grain of salt and take with a pinch of salt are two idioms which has the same meaning.

Origin of “take it with a grain of salt”

A grain of salt (or a pinch of salt) is a very small piece of salt, so this idiom starts with the idea that most food tastes better with a little bit of salt. Food is tastier and therefore easier to swallow with a grain of salt, so this idiom claims that if someone is telling you something that is probably not entirely true or correct, it is easier to swallow it with a grain of salt than to argue against it.

Example Sentences

He can’t take it with a grain of salt.
As with any advice, take it with a grain of salt.
This is only a sort of handout. You may take it with a grain of salt.
You should take what he says with a grain of salt.
I try to take everything with a grain of salt.
We take his predictions with a grain of salt.
I always took the rumors with a grain of salt.
You must always take what he says with a grain of salt. He’s born liar.
You should take his promise with a grain of salt.
What he said should be taken with a grain of salt.
This is only a sort of handout. You may take it with a grain of salt.
We took her to a psychic reader about a month ago-we take that with a grain of salt.
Sometimes he is right, but usually his predictions have to be taken with a grain of salt.
With this in mind, the original rumour should be with a grain of salt.
We also do not take for granted the optimization of code by design and we take it with a grain of salt every time somebody tells us how good JVMs are now at optimization and garbage collection.
As with any advice, take it with a grain of salt.
revious studies had suggested that following a low-sodium diet may help improve asthma control, but researchers now say that advice should be taken with a grain of salt.