heard it from the horse’s mouth—heard it directly from the person concerned:
- The story was even more intriguing when we heard it from the horse’s mouth.
little bird told me, a—said of information gathered from a source not to be named:
- A little bird told me that the appointment of a director will be made shortly.
Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase go tell it to the birds—addressed to a person who says smth. that is not credible or is a lie:
- After this incident, it might be difficult to dismiss some witchcraft claims with the expression, “go tell it to the birds!”