Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Describe The Moment They Realized They've Been Doing Something Wrong For Years

People Describe The Moment They Realized They've Been Doing Something Wrong For Years
red and white no smoking sign
Randy Laybourne on Unsplash
Make us preferred on Google

It can be very embarrassing when you pronounce words wrong. Let's face it, the English language is super complicated, especially if you're learning it for the first time.

You can't always trust yourself to pronounce things phonetically either because of all the different rules!

Recently, a relative pronounced the word "epitome" like "epi-tome." They were embarrassed when I corrected them.

I told them that it wasn't a big deal, though they did note that they love that word, have used it for a long time, and that no one corrected them until that moment...

Ouch.


People told their stories after Redditor adeptwarrior asked the online community:

"What's an 'oh sh*t' moment where you realised you've been doing something the wrong way for years?"

"When I was five..."

"When I was five a Pizza Hut employee told me that the powder on the breadsticks was called fairy dust. Ordered extra fairy dust on my breadsticks until I was around 14 when an employee said ‘do you mean garlic salt?’ It still devastates me to realize how obtuse I was."

HolyCulture1983

Believe it or not, Pizza Hut does refer to the mixture—made of of italian seasoning oregano, basil, garlic, marjoram, and parmesan—as fairy dust.

"When he caught me..."

"It wasn’t very long, but when I was learning to drive my dad was explaining the rule of thumb regarding a safe distance to be behind the car in front of you. I thought it meant to hold your thumb up and if your thumb didn’t cover the entire car you were too close to it."

"When he caught me doing that he asked me what I was doing. When I explained he burst out laughing, then considered it, and concluded it wasn’t a bad idea but perhaps a bit distracting."

lukelnk

Also every other driver thinks youre a super friendly guy or a bit passive agressive.

"We got it delivered..."

"We bought a nice liquor cabinet. We got it delivered and noticed it was a bit shorter than we thought. No biggie. Three years later, we’re moving. Lift up cabinet and these beautiful, ornate, screw on legs wrapped in tape and bubble wrap fall off the bottom. Looks so much better now!"

ethanbubblegumtate

This is cute—it's like you discovered an entirely brand new piece of furniture!

"When he mentioned..."

"Until last week, when my father in law would made a phone call on his very basic non-touch-screen flip phone he would open the menu, scroll to the phone icon, open it, hit the soft key for contacts, scroll to the person he wanted to call, press ok, then press the soft key to call."

"When he mentioned how he preferred his landline because he could just dial the number, I said "Humour me. Just dial the number and hit the talk button." I've never seen a man so simultaneously grateful and embarrassed."

ThievingRock

Aww, this is sweet. It's important to help older folks feel up to speed with technology. He was definitely more grateful than embarrassed.

"Since the dawn of time..."

"Since the dawn of time, I would pick up the silverware and utensils out of their tray in the dishwasher and put them away in their drawers then go back and pick up more out of the dishwasher. Then one day I saw my wife lift the tray out of the dishwasher and I legit stood there with my mouth open."

PetesBrotherPaul

I did not ask to be attacked like this. Leave me alone!

"I always thought..."

"I always thought eggplant tasted "itchy" like itchy was a flavor, like sour or salty. Fed some to my baby and his face turned red wherever the eggplant touched, and I realized we're both just allergic to eggplant. And itchy isn't a flavor."

[deleted]

This is rather sweet but glad to hear that neither you nor your baby had a more serious reaction!

"Apparently the red ring around the bologna is not supposed to be eaten."

A_Wild_Taka_Appears

Tell that to just about everyone I grew up with.

"My mom..."

"My mom has been pronouncing Massachusetts "Massa Two Sh*ts" for years and no one corrected her because they thought she just had strong feelings about Massachusetts."

18tedwards

I mean, have you heard of "Massholes"? They're a thing.

"Well the name I recorded..."

"Well... This was a few years ago. I was the director of IT for a very large company. I was given a new cellphone and told to setup my voicemail. I don’t know that when I recorded my name it would be played to whomever I leave a voice mail for."

"Well the name I recorded was, “Dooder84 Corporate IT Godddd!!!”

I worked there for 4 years until someone in the hallway referred to me as the “corporate IT GoD!” I was so embarrassed."

dooder84

Wear it confidently because this type of stuff makes people like you more. They don't feel the need to be fake around you.

"My mom used to..."

"My mom used to refer to me as a “bull in a china shop." Always heard it as “bowl in a china shop." Thinking it was a compliment. At about 22 I hear someone else use the phrase and realized she meant “bull,” not “bowl."

cubedtraffic1

Aww, there goes your mom telling you how dainty and priceless you are again!

Don't be too embarrassed. We all fumble, it's what makes us human. Laugh at yourself because chances are that no one else cares as much as you do.

Have some stories of your own? Tell us more in the comments below!

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

George Conway; Laura Loomer
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for CNN; Brandon Bell/Getty Images

George Conway Epically Trolls Laura Loomer After She Claims New York DMV's Credit Card Machine Displayed 'Palestinian Flag'

Conspiracy theorist and acolyte of MAGA Republican President Donald Trump Laura Loomer drew widespread ridicule over her latest outrageous claim. Lawyer and ex-husband of Trump staffer Kellyanne Conway turned anti-Trump activist George Conway lead the charge on calling Loomer out on her latest nonsense.

On October 7, Loomer shared a photo on X that was allegedly taken at a Department of Motor Vehicles office in New York City. The MAGA influencer also tagged NYC's progressive Democratic Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani's personal X account.

Keep Reading Show less
Susan Collins
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Susan Collins Dragged After GOP PAC Boosts Her Campaign In The Wrong Portland

On July 4, 1786, the city of Portland, Maine, was officially founded with its newly-minted name. Almost 60 years later in 1845, Maineiac Francis Pettygrove won a coin toss against Asa Lovejoy and named their soon-to-be incorporated city in Oregon Portland after the largest city in his home state of Maine.

Since then, Portland, Oregon, has swelled to a city of approximately 675,000 people while its namesake boasts a population of just 70,000. In 2026, when people hear Portland, they think of Oregon instead of the original city in Maine.

Keep Reading Show less
Screenshot of Whitey Taylor
CNN

CNN Just Visited A Struggling MAGA Store—And It Spells Bad News For Trump

CNN correspondent Elle Reeve returned to Whitey Taylor's Trump Town USA in Boones Mill, Virginia, for the first time since visiting in 2023, and her segment shows that business for the Donald Trump-themed shop has collapsed as more MAGA followers break away from the president.

Reeve, in a segment for Anderson Cooper 360, reported that "things aren't what they used to be" for the store. She spoke with Taylor, who revealed that the store, which used to make $12,000 to $15,000 in sales per day now only makes between $1,500 - $2,000 per day. On occasion, Taylor will hit $3,000 in sales if he's lucky.

Keep Reading Show less
Pete Hegseth
Alex Wroblewski / AFP via Getty Images

Pete Hegseth Roasted After Video Of Him Trying And Failing To Keep Up With Marines Goes Viral

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was widely mocked after he was shown struggling to keep up with Marines while running around a track during a recent training.

In a C-SPAN video shared by FactPost on X, Hegseth is shown lagging beyond the pack as Marines jog around a track in San Diego.

Keep Reading Show less
Vice President JD Vance speaks during a Washington, D.C., press conference on American jobs and visa fraud.
C-SPAN

JD Vance Blasted After Sharing His Absolutely Mind-Numbing Definition Of 'Socialism'

According to Merriam-Webster, socialism broadly refers to economic and political systems centered on collective or government ownership and control of the means of production.

Not exactly a concept requiring a Ph.D. to explain. One would think Vice President JD Vance, a Yale Law School graduate whose party practically uses the word as punctuation, could manage a working definition.

Keep Reading Show less