Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Break Down The Cruelest Ways To Break Up With Someone

People Break Down The Cruelest Ways To Break Up With Someone
Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Breaking up is never easy for either party involved. But when a romantic relationship fizzles, the best thing for couples who are no longer in love to do is to go their separate ways.


Of course, things get complicated when the feeling isn't mutual and one person wants to stay in the relationship while the other has already emotionally moved on.

Curious to hear about bad breakups, Redditor SneakTechnique21 asked:

"What is the cruelest way to break up with someone?"

A person may have to resort to the following measures if the other isn't wanting to leave the relationship.

Appointing A New Position

"By asking them to wingman you on your next conquest."

– securityseminars

Nuptial Miss

"Longhaul it to the wedding and dump them at the alter, leave with bridesmaid(s)"

– Robftw

Plot Twist

"Bend down on one knee in front of her family after doing a big speech about how much you love her then get up, kiss her and say 'but it won't work out' and leave."

– entertainer011

A Ruff Exit

"Buy them a puppy as a parting gift, they will forever tell the story of how this lovely adorable doggo came into their life."

– I_Love_Lava_Lamp

Classic Scenario

"Cheating on you openly."

– AceKijani

Gradually distancing oneself can be one of the cruelest thing to do to a soon-to-be ex.

Slow Burn

"Ghosting but message back every so often. Make tiny bits of effort every so often and occasionally on an important day make a half decent effort. Basically string them along for as long as you can then let them see you with someone else."

– brzt6060

Leaving Without Saying Anything

"Don't break up with them at all, just slowly start being distant, act like they're an inconvenience whenever they're around, stop replying to messages or calls except perhaps every so often with a short reply, pretend you're busy whenever they're around or ask about when you want to meet up next."

"Basically do everything to cut them out of your life without ever actually telling them you want them gone or being directly abrasive. Real simple, low effort way to mess up someone's head significantly."

"Especially if you stretch it out over a long period of time and then just move on without telling them."

– ThearchOfStories

Blocking The Ex

"My ex did this to me. Used me as an emotional support while she was looking after her sick grandmother and doing her PhD. Started doing this once she defended her Thesis and her grandmother passed away (within a couple of weeks). For almost 6 months she would act busy not answering phone calls or messages, sex became almost non existent and finally broke up with me when I was in a different country for a conference. Now she is trying to insert herself into my life, wants to be the cool aunty for my daughter 🤷🏽♂️. Had to block her everywhere"

– Jolarpet

People who aren't good at communicating may employ these heartless methods to say "goodbye."

Silence Speaks A Thousand Words

"Simply not talking. Most hurtful when you are just cut off by someone and you don’t know why and then you just imagine what could have gone wrong. It is very demeaning."

– Kind_human77

Public Declaration

"Post a detailed relationship report on their Facebook as if it were a car review done by Jeremy Clarkson, giving them a final score and a time around our test track. And finish with 'on that bombshell, it's time to end.'"

– __groundhogday__

The Next Lover

"Send pictures of you with someone else and add 'I never loved you for a second.'"

– SuvenPan

As my 7th grade girlfriend did. With a note titled, “you don’t float my boat” with a bunch of sinking boats drawn on it with about a paragraph insulting you after. To make matters worse, it was given to in between classes by her best friend, who watched me read it while laughing the whole time. As I cried.

As evidenced in the responses above, people can be so cruel.

Hopefully, the new person that has created a spark in your life isn't one who is capable of any of these devious break up tactics, if and when that ever happens.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Screenshot of Seth Meyers discussing Donald Trump
@MarcoFoster/X

Seth Meyers Responds To Trump's 'Truly Deranged' Personal Attack Against Him With Hilarious Takedown

After President Donald Trump lashed out at late-night host Seth Meyers on Truth Social over the weekend and called him a "truly deranged lunatic," Meyers responded to Trump’s “ranting and raving” about him with a damning supercut on his program.

Trump apparently tuned in to Thursday night’s episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers, where Meyers poked fun at the president’s complaints about Navy aircraft carriers using electromagnetic catapults instead of traditional steam-powered ones. Meyers joked that Trump "spends more time thinking about catapults than Wile E. Coyote."

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @rootednjoyy's TikTok video
@rootednjoyy/TikTok

Girl's Hilarious Reaction To Getting Divisive Candy For Halloween Caught On Doorbell Cam

In the '80s and '90s, kids were raised with the understanding that they got what they got, and they should say, "Thank you," for what they received. This was true for birthdays, holidays, and trick-or-treating on Halloween, even if they got candy they wanted to throw away the instant they turned the corner.

But kids today are much more communicative about what they like and don't like, and they can be brutal in their bluntness.

Keep ReadingShow less
Lauren Boebert
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Lauren Boebert Slammed After Photos Of Her Racist ICE-Theme Halloween Costume Emerge

Colorado Republican Representative Lauren Boebert—one of the most prominent MAGA voices in Congress—has sparked outrage after she and her boyfriend Kyle Pearcy attended a Halloween party dressed as a Mexican woman and an ICE agent.

Boebert wore a sombrero and a traditional Mexican-style dress to a party in Loveland, Colorado, while Pearcy, a realtor, attended dressed as an ICE agent, complete with a uniform and weapon. The event took place amid growing outrage over President Donald Trump’s ongoing immigration crackdown that is tearing apart families across the country.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Marjorie Taylor Greene
ABC

MTG Just Admitted The Awkward Truth About The Republican Healthcare Plan On 'The View'

Speaking on The View, Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene spoke about sparring with House Speaker Mike Johnson over healthcare—and revealed that the GOP does not have any replacement for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) despite what Johnson and her fellow congressional conservatives tell the public.

Democrats have continued to reject Republicans’ proposed continuing resolution to keep the government open without considering an extension of the premium tax credit that helps subsidize health insurance for people earning between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level.

Keep ReadingShow less
protest with flat Earth sign
Kajetan Sumila on Unsplash

People Share The Best Ways To Shut Down A Debate With A Flat Earther Family Member

The Flat Earth conspiracy theory is strictly a modern online movement, rumored to have begun as a prank, that gained momentum among people who mistrust authority through the power of social media.

There is a persistent myth that Europeans in the Middle Ages believed the Earth was flat. But that is a 19th-century fabrication to sell Columbus Day, not historical reality.

Keep ReadingShow less