What do People Mean When They Say Something Should be “Taken With a Grain of Salt”?
When people say that something should be taken with a grain of salt, they mean that it is a very good idea to introduce a measure of skepticism into one’s evaluation of a situation. The saying is a reminder that people often wear blinders and do not think things through thoroughly, especially when they sound too good to be true. This idiom is extremely old, and it has ancient roots, thanks to the long intertwined history of humans and salt, a truly useful spice.