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I've seen this phrase used a few times and i don't think I get it. What
meaning does the "ては" indicate? Here are examples from google:

> そんな彼女を直子はちらりと見たものの、口に出しては何も言わない。

> それは、現代人の共通認識のはずではあるまいか。 と、心の中で密かに抗議したものの、口に出しては何も言わない。
> どうせ言っても、呆れ顔でたしなめられるだけだからだ。

This usage doesn't match any definitions of ては I can understand or find in a
dictionary. What does it mean?
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-26T10:23:27.943
30729
2016-01-26T12:46:22.623
4187
question
grammar meaning
Help understanding "口に出しては何も言わない"
> 「[口]{くち}に[出]{し}し **ては** [何]{なに}も[言]{い}わない」

「ては」, in this phrase, is just the 「て」 in the te-form of 「出す」 and the "contrast
and emphasize" 「は」.

In other words, 「口に出し **ては** 何も言わない」 is only an emphatic form of 「口に出し **て**
何も言わない」. = " ** _to not verbalize one's thought_** "

If you take a close look at both your sentences, you will notice that in each
sentence, a person has a thought or opinion about a matter but s/he is not
expressing it verbally, correct?

I feel you might have thought too much into this 「ては」 as it actually has many
different (and important) usages.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-26T12:46:22.623
30734
2016-01-26T12:46:22.623
30729
answer