Like most of us, I went to elementary and high school with multiple sets of twins. There were two sets in my class—identical sisters and fraternal brothers.
The brothers were never mistaken for each other. One was a stockier blond while the other was a taller brunette.
The sisters were often confused for each other by adults and some kids in other classes, but I don’t remember it ever being an issue for us—their classmates. To us, they didn't look, sound, or act identically.
We could point out a list of things that were different between them even though they dressed similarly, wore the same hairstyle, and were about the same height and weight.
Reddit user one_n_0nly_throwaway asked:
" Identical twins of Reddit, what's something non-identical between the 2 of you?"
Headgear
"My cousins are identical twins. One is 130 lbs. The other is 320 lbs."
~ tonic613
"How do people tell them apart?"
~ username_cheques
"One wears a hat."
~ ThaVolt
Artistic Ability
"I like to joke that my brother soaked up all the artistic juices in the womb as my mother is an astoundingly good artist and incredibly creative. He's an incredible artist and writer."
"As for me, on the other hand... Stick figures, and even those he does better than me."
"Other than that, we're pretty much the same person."
~ Quiiliitiila
Reflection
"I dated an identical twin."
"They had matching birthmarks in several places."
"But they were all mirror imaged. One left-handed, one right, etc..."
~ MontEcola
Life Can Be Hard
"My wife is an identical twin. When we first started dating I could tell them apart from their voices, smell, makeup, and eyes."
"However, when they swam or took a very recent bath they were damn near impossible to tell apart. No smell and no makeup. If they were silent it was tough."
"Now 20 years later, her twin became an alcoholic and turned to food as a coping mechanism. My wife isn’t little, but she doesn't look at all like her sister anymore."
~ Sav273
Cancer Sucks
"My twin and I both had cancer. She died and I survived."
"It's been difficult. It was six years ago almost that she left us and I still don't have the words adequate enough to describe the absolute magnitude of the loss."
"My twin had breast cancer and I had cervical cancer. The geneticists looked into it and determined there was no genetic correlation—it was just one of those things."
"And yes, we both had cancer at the same time. She found out she was terminal about two weeks before I was diagnosed, yet she lived for another four years after that. Bless her."
~ musingsatmidnight
Mirror, Mirror
"We’re mirror image; I’m left handed and he’s right handed."
"Our personalities are also opposites in many ways with me being more outgoing versus him being reserved. He enjoys sports and I enjoy gaming, etc..."
"Even our careers feel opposite. I’m in sales and he’s a programmer."
~ Goopyteacher
Smile!
"I still have a baby tooth and he doesn't."
"My adult tooth never came in to make it loose so still in at 36 years while that never happened with my brother."
~ johnthedruid
Not Quite Opposites
"Mirror image twin here as well."
"I'm left-handed, and my brother is right-handed; our hair cowlick is on opposite sides of our heads, but those are the only differences between us."
"We're both video game nerds."
~ Caligula1992
Life Stage
"I’m married with kids. My twin is not."
~ trogdor259
"They say there truly is one person out there for you..."
"But there are two of you, so you'll have to share."
~ lingering_POO
Ahchoo!
"My twin and I are also mirror twins."
"I have a mole on the front of my neck, they have it on the back. I'm left-handed, they are right-handed."
"They got all the allergies, I didn't."
~ Mammoth-Tea-5495
Alternate Reality
"I have a male friend who is gay and very well-groomed."
"He has an identical twin who is straight, not as well groomed, and 20lbs heavier."
"It's like seeing an alternate reality of my friend if he hadn't left the Mormon church."
~ iosefgol
Cross Your Heart
"My boobs are about 3-4 cup sizes larger than hers. We have no idea why."
"We’ve joked many times that I would LOVE to give her half of mine. They can be a pain in the a** sometimes!"
~ Sea_Bobcat_8037
Weekends
"I know a set of twins who are in their mid thirties—usually when twins age, some differences can be spotted."
"But not these two, they are absolutely identical, have the same job, dress the same for work—they have corporate jobs and the company’s policy is not very rigid so they have room to dress differently, but choose not to."
"Same hair cut, same glasses, same weight, similar birhmarks, go to the same gym, it’s really hard to tell them apart."
"Except on weekends."
"One is queer and the other is super traditional straight. If you meet them at a family function or a party, probably one will be wearing makeup, so you know who is who."
~ anothermegan
"I love that I can’t tell if the identical twins you’re describing are male or female, but it still makes sense either way!"
~ KatAstrophie-
Uh... Sure
"Not an answer to the question, but it's mind-blowing how many people over the years asked us if our boy/girl twins were identical."
"So many that when someone out in public asked, we just started saying yes."
~ post4u
"I have a twin sister (I'm a dude) and I've had two people in the last year, both adults, ask me if we were identical."
~ leeeeeroyjeeeeenkins
Chin Check
"I have identical twins. One has a freckle on her chin, and the other doesn't. Makes it really easy to tell them apart."
~ bordermelancollie09
"Knew a pair who were so alike, they'd frequently trick their parents by prentending to be the other one."
"Until one fell off a swing and got a scar."
~ JiskiLathiUskiBhains
"Mine do the same. I have to be like, 'WAIT! Show me your chins...'."
~ bordermelancollie09
Have you ever had a problem telling twins apart? If not, how did you distinguish who was who?
@jaketapoer/Bluesky
