18 euphemisms for “I haven’t a f*cking clue” that make ignorance seem really intelligent
It’s well known that different professions have their own jargon that makes perfect sense to those in the know and is a mystery to everyone else. One important phrase that’s necessary for every profession is “I don’t know” or, more often, “Not a f_cking clue” – either way, people have been sharing their version because of this tweet.
What are the technical terms, in your field, for 'dunno'?
In medicine there's 'idoeopathic'
In archeology/anthropology there's 'ritual purposes'
How do you professionally term 'we haven't got a clue'?— Hannawe'en 🎃🕸️ (@Hannah_Chutzpah) December 16, 2018
These are our 18 favourite euphemisms.
1.
In linguistics, calling a word a "pragmatic marker" is often a clear sign that we don't have a clue what it means. https://t.co/ej2abbl4W9
— George Wⓐlkden (@gwalkden) December 22, 2018
2.
In software engineering, we say "the issue was not reproducible". https://t.co/O0jJ2nwP8L
— @chimeracoder.bsky.social 🦦 🏳️🌈 (@chimeracoder) December 23, 2018
3.
In math/physics, "_____ is left as an exercise for the reader"
— Khaz (@KhazWolf) December 24, 2018
4.
In Law: "It depends." https://t.co/sMe9TkmTJQ
— Waqar Vick Rehman (@WaqarVick) December 24, 2018
5.
Ah, in astrobiology it's '…aliens?' 😂 https://t.co/jsHiyRxYbR
— Abigail Harrison (@AstronautAbby) December 27, 2018
6.
In cosmology: dark matter and dark energy. https://t.co/Ywl6KgENz2
— Sophia Gad-Nasr (@Astropartigirl) December 23, 2018
7.
In software development it's "It works on my machine" 😉 https://t.co/ejkdxPP9Xp
— Rich Turner (@richturn_ms) December 23, 2018
8.
In psychology, it is "we thank the reviewer for raising this important question, but it is beyond the scope of the present paper" 😉 https://t.co/AW0SnlybL2
— Eiko Fried (@EikoFried) December 23, 2018
9.
In transcription, [inaudible].
— jenphalian (@jenphalian) December 23, 2018
