The phrase "was down mouth" refers to someone who is in a bad mood or feeling sorry for themselves. The spelling of this phrase can be explained using IPA phonetic transcription, which breaks down each sound in the word. "Was" is pronounced /wɒz/, with the "a" sound in "cat" and the "z" sound at the end. "Down" is pronounced /daʊn/, with the "ow" sound in "cow" and the "n" at the end. "Mouth" is pronounced /maʊθ/, with the "ow" sound again and the "th" sound at the end.