lip service

First use appears c. 1590, in A Treatise against Witchcraft by Henry Holland. Compare earlier lip-labour.

• "The candidate gave lip service to fixing the problems, but it is doubtful that he will do much."
• "Don’t madam me, — I can’t bear none of your lip service. I’m a plain-spoken woman, that’s what I am, and I like other people’s tongues to be as plain as mine."
• "Your love is thick, and it swallowed me whole / You're so much braver than I gave you credit for / That's not lip service"
• "“OK, let’s see if he’s really being honest about this,” Ms. Neloms, 42, who is Black, recalled thinking. “My prayer is that it’s not just lip service.”"