Speak softly and carry a big stick

1. A proverb quoted by Theodore Roosevelt as a brief statement of his approach to foreign policy. (See big stick diplomacy.)

Example Sentences

One is that Trump has turned Theodore Roosevelt’s maxim to “speak softly and carry a big stick” on its head: He speaks loudly and carries barely any stick at all.

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“Speak softly, and carry a big stick,” Theodore Roosevelt advised, though he never envisioned a successor would prove capable of obliterating cities half a world away in under half an hour.

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It is quite common these days to hear those who specialise in Taiwan studies quoting the old maxim from President Theodore Roosevelt to "speak softly and carry a big stick".

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“To use Theodore Roosevelt’s phrase, Biden’s approach to China can be described as ‘speak softly and carry a big stick,’” said Yuen Yuen Ang, a political scientist at the University of Michigan.

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In 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt described his foreign policy as “Speak softly and carry a big stick.”

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