“The best speech is brief and weighty, and not so long that it wearies.”

Al-Tha‘alibi (d. 429 AH / 1038 CE) records it in this form in at-Tamthil wa’l-Muhadarah, among sayings on eloquence. The version usually quoted today — “the best speech is brief and to the point,” mā qalla wa dall — keeps the rhyme and changes the second word. Both make the same demand: brevity alone is not the virtue; the few words have to carry weight.