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People Share The Things They Learned Embarrassingly Late In Life

Woman holding up an Oxford English Dictionary
Photo by Houcine Ncib on Unsplash

There is so much to learn in the world, it's impossible for one person to know absolutely everything there is to know.

But there are certain things, like common phrases and idioms, that everyone seems to use that might be a little embarrassing to not understand until later in life.


Redditor Curious-2577 asked:

"What's something you learned 'embarrassingly late' in life?"

Addictive Personality

"My sister was in her fifties when she found out the meaning of, 'You have an addictive personality.'"

"She thought after all these years of therapy that it meant that people were addicted to her personality."

"We laughed hysterically when we talked about this (in a very sad way)."

- casper02127

Horse Toes

"I thought that horses had toes until I was 22. I thought the hoof was a 'horseshoe' and the toes were tucked inside."

"How did I learn how wrong I was, you ask?"

"I was walking past a cavalry museum and saw a horse statue and loudly remarked, 'It must hurt so bad when they fold a horse’s toes to put them into the shoe!'"

"Dozens of horse enthusiasts turned and looked at me with wild bewilderment in their eyes."

- BronNatsPulisic

Referencing Flowers

"The saying is, in fact, 'Nip it in the bud' and not 'Nip it in the butt.'"

- too_sharp

Pastures New

"A few months ago, two of my colleagues both handed in their notice at around the same time."

"I kept reading/hearing the sentence, 'They’re both moving on to pastures new’ being thrown about the office in the weeks leading up to them leaving, and I hadn’t heard this phrase before and thought that was the name of the rival company that they were going to, like, 'Pastures New.'"

"I thought it was weird that nobody was talking about how they were both leaving for the same company."

"I was in the car with one of the two people who were leaving and said, 'So where is it that you and X are going to be working? Is it...’"

"And just before I could embarrass myself and say ‘Pastures New,' they interrupted me and said they’re not going to the same place and asked me where I had heard that."

"I think at that moment, I realized I was stupid and didn’t mention it again."

- WorriedSoft

Mario Brothers

"I think I was in college when I realized that Mario and Luigi are plumbers. I thought they just went and up down these tubes just because that was the theme of the game."

- dontbemystalker

Bonsai Trees

"That Bonsai are not a species of tree, but a way to grow them. Any tree can be a bonsai."

- ixent

Houston, We Have a Problem

"Houston is not the name of the guy astronauts talk to."

- vienna_versailles

Cowboy Beans

"I learned that pork and beans are not called 'cowboy beans.' I was 18 and asked a grocery store clerk to help me find the 'cowboy beans.'"

"We were looking everywhere and I was getting frustrated because I know that every store carries these beans. After a while, I picked up a pork and beans can with a picture and said, 'See, they look just like this!'"

"He said, 'You mean pork and beans?'"

"Then I realized that my mom called them that so that I would eat them."

"The look of disappointment from that grocery store clerk haunts me to this day."

- whyunoletmepost

The Pulitzer

"Let me tell you about how I thought you were awarded a 'Pullet Surprise.'"

- BendyBrains

Rum and Coke

"Not too late in life, but I thought my parents were making 'Roman Cokes' until I went to college."

"Which, I think is a much better name for the drink (Rum and Coke) anyway."

- Th3seViolentDelights

Oh No, Not Acoma!

"That a coma was 'A' coma. Until I was probably 19 or so, I thought it was 'acoma.'"

"I thought you fell into acoma."

- FightWithBrickWalls

It Must Have Been a One-Way Trip

"My parents were divorced the whole time and my mom was not, in fact, taking a vacation, lmao (laughing my a** off)."

- artemus_who

Multitasking

​"I live near the Hospital for Joint Diseases… when I was a kid, I thought was a special hospital for people who had two or more different diseases at the same time."

- Baffhy_Duck

Ore-Ida Fries

"Moving cross-country, driving east to west, and crossing from Idaho to Oregon, I noticed huge fields with signs for the Ore-Ida Potato company."

"So I was in my early 20s when I figured out Ore-Ida wasn’t just a brand name but was because their potatoes came from Oregon and Idaho."

- Deadhawk142

Kid Logic

"When I was really young, my sister told me she threw her guts up. So I was really afraid of vomiting my entire insides up for years."

- Presitigious_Sweet_50

Some of these really had us laughing as we realized the revelations some of these Redditors were having.

But when we're really honest with ourselves, we probably didn't figure out some of these until later, too.

Things People Secretly Love But Would Never Admit To In Public

Reddit user sweet_chick283 asked: 'What do you secretly love that you would never admit to in public?;

Collection of VHS tapes
Bruno Guerrero/Unsplash

What makes us all unique is our passions and the things we love, whether it's singing in the shower, reading books, or listening to specific music artists.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where we are judged for our various tastes and interests thanks to social media, and it makes us consciously selective about sharing the things we love on the internet.

Curious to hear about people's personal desires under anonymity, Redditor sweet_chick283 asked:

"What do you secretly love that you would never admit to in public?"

These aren't really chores for the following Redditors.

Good Clean Fun

"Mopping, im a janitor and generally hate my work... but damn mopping is so good."

– MrDDog06

"When you have a great rhythm going it is something special. I get the same feeling while I vacuum, but won’t let my wife know I enjoy it."

– Bogus_34

Act Of Unwrinkling

"Ironing clothes. A dozen of them. Can’t explain how it relaxes me. I told one person and they looked at me like I’m crazy."

– eerie_white_glow

"My mum misses the days when dad would be out on a Friday night, my brother out with friends and me upstairs quietly playing PS1. She would pour herself a Bacardi & Coke and do the ironing while watching her TV shows."

"I'm sure she doesn't really miss it now that we've moved out and they've retired but it was her wind-down after a busy working week so I can see how people can find it relaxing."

– xdq

Our solo actions can spark joy.

Big Brother Is Watching

"pretending to be on the Truman show and whenever im in my house i act all inconspicuous so they dont know that i know that they’re watching me."

– Bec_121

"C’mon man, you’re not supposed to let him know. You signed a contract when signing up for live views. I’m reporting you."

– doeswaspsmakehoney

The Multi-Tasker

"Playing video games naked at home while eating cheese."

– thickening_agent

Releasing The Kraken

"I love the feeling when you've eaten good fibre and let out a solid long train log in the toilet. That feeling is heavenly."

– therapoootic

"Even better when it’s a clean wipe and not a poo crayon."

– TheWarmestHugz

Ultimate Comfort

"My (male 41) weekend routine is coming home from work, make hot chocolate, start a fire, dress in a ugly pink nightgown made for old ladies and watch forensic files."

– crazyloomis

Some people are obsessed with collecting things.

So Kawai

"Sanrio stationery stores. All those different multicolor pens, a thousand kinds of erasers, spiral bound notebooks galore... my kids sadly have absolutely no appreciation for this wonderland..."

– HavingNotAttained

It's A Staple

"Office supplies have a weird, special place in my heart ever since I was a kid. They don't even have to be 'cute' necessarily."

"Japan's legendary stationery stores is unironically a reason I want to go."

– _CozyLavender_

Not Caring Anymore

"The older I get the shorter that list gets. Not because I love less things, but because I don't care about hiding it."

– Bi-Beast

"YES!! I'm 53 now. I'm working my first job in public since 2006. Today is Halloween and we're allowed to dress up so I am sitting here waiting to go to work dressed as a VERY bad Wednesday Addams. My bf said I'd 'look stupid' because no one else will probably dress up and I'm like, 'WHO CARES!' My makeup looks horrible and not like I practiced, but I DO NOT CARE! I'm having fun with it anyhow and I don't care if my coworkers dress up or not. I'm bein' ME! :)"

– deanie1970

Honorable mentions start here.

The Savior

"Picking up worms from the street and sidewalks when it rains and moving them into the dirt so they don’t burn in the sun, every time it rains I do this."

– sky_kitten89

Hero Of The Moment

"Yoooo I scoot SO many snails and worms. I work as a tech/mechanic at an automotive shop, I had a peoject car towed to my house the other day and it was covered in snails. I saw them when the tow guy/coworker was unloading and I was like, 'oh! It comes with free snails!' and began moving them. He laughed then realized and said, '... Oh, you're serious. Uh... Okay.'"

"I don't care who knows it. These little things barely can look out for themselves, why shouldn't we if we can take a moment to help? I don't care what happens next, it probably doesn't matter overall but I can help this moment."

– chris14020

Why should some of the hidden desires mentioned above have to be secret?

Redditors opening up about some of these would make them a hit at parties–no shaming.

As a matter of fact, I'll totally be down for a Forensic Files viewing party where we all make hot chocolate, light the fireplace, and cozy up together in our respective pink ugly nightgowns for old ladies.

historical reenactors
Sigmund on Unsplash

We've probably all heard some variation of the saying "Truth is stranger than fiction."

Real life isn't just strange, it can also be downright ridiculous.

History is riddled with moments of absurdity.

So ridiculous that people have a hard time believing real life is, well, really real.

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