to speak volumes for someone/something
= decir mucho de alguien/algo
tuː spiːk ˈvɒljʊmz fɔː ˈsʌmwʌn/ˈsʌmθɪŋ
El significado de to speak volumes for someone/something (literalmente,
"hablar volúmenes por alguien/algo")es
decir mucho de alguien sin necesidad de usar palabras.
El idiom to
speak volumes for someone/something apareció pro
primera vez en 1803 cuando M. Wilmot lo utilizó
en una carta: “A sentimental story that speaks
Volumes in favour of the Count and his Daughter.”
Aquí el signficado
de volumes tiene que ver con la información que
está contenida en (muchos) libros.
The origin of the phrase is unclear. It might have
originated in the early 1700s in other forms, but
was not very popular. It gained popularity in the
mid 1900s, after a stage show called "Out On The
Town" was performed in 1944 and a film by the same
name came out in 1949.
https://www.theidioms.com/out-on-the-town/