Meaning
If there are signs or rumours of something - usually wrongdoing - there is probably some truth behind them. Typically said to justify taking gossip, allegations or circumstantial signs seriously. The shorter British form 'there's no smoke without fire' carries the same meaning. Conversational and proverbial; can carry an insinuating, guilt-presuming connotation, so it is often challenged in fairness debates. Regional use: General English; 'no smoke without fire' more common in British usage.
Origin
A proverb of very long standing rather than a coined phrase. The Phrase Finder cites Cicero (43 BCE) as the earliest recorded appearance of the idea, which circulated in classical and later European writings (French has 'il n'y a pas de fumee sans feu'). In English the proverb circulated in inverted form: Etymonline's 'smoke' entry notes John Heywood's 1562 line 'There is no fyre without some smoke', with related forms existing since the mid-15th century. The metaphorical use - smoke as visible rumours pointing to a hidden fire of fact - spread in 16th-century England; the modern 'where there's smoke, there's fire' shape is now the usual American form, while 'there's no smoke without fire' remains the traditional British equivalent. The metaphor itself is literal in origin: smoke really does betoken fire.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- No smoke without fire
- There's no smoke without fire
- Where there's smoke, there's usually fire
Usage Examples
- Three separate complaints about the contractor have landed on my desk - where there's smoke there's fire.
- The paper held the story for months, arguing that where there's smoke there's fire is not a legal standard.
- 'No smoke without fire,' her aunt said darkly, when the engagement was called off a second time.