When young children get upset with one another, they often tend to resort to hitting or kicking, prompting a parent or guardian to tell them to "use your words"!
However, if words can't leave a bruise or physical scar, some things people say to one another can leave even more lasting damage than a kick in the leg or a slap in the face.
As words have a way of genuinely hurting people.
Unlike wounds, which eventually heal, the hurtful things people say tend to linger in your memory for the rest of your life.
Redditor The_WhiteMantis was curious to hear the meanest things people were ever told, leading them to ask:
"What’s the meanest thing someone ever said to you?"
Ooooh, Snap... Mean None The Less...
"In middle school I had a very slight stammer."
"I wrote a paper in English class and my teacher was sharing that she really enjoyed it and that you could hear my voice in it a lot."
"Then someone from the back of the class yells 'What, does he f*cking stutter when he types too?!'”
"At the time I was so embarrassed but honestly that’s the greatest burn I’ve ever received."- Turnone_gsz
Talking Behind Someone's Back Isn't Always Wrong...
"'I don't want him. I never wanted him'."- my dad.
"During the custody discussion during my parents divorce."
"I was 9."- Quinn4111
What A Conclusion To Jump To...
"My step mom found a giant rubber band in my room."
"Then accused me of shooting up heroin."
"I was 16."
"Never seen the stuff."- Lost_Computer_1808
Nasty Talk Is Never Forgotten By ANYONE Who Hears It...
"Bagged up stuff for a customer and said to her 'let me know if this too heavy and I can separate into two bags'."
"She was on her cell phone and nodded at me."
"So I total it for her and give her the bag."
"She makes it to the front door and turns around and says 'you loaded this too heavy, you have to remember not everyone is as heavy as you are', a reference to how fat I was."
"I was more offended by the fact that she went out of her to insult me, especially when I offered a solution BEFORE she walked off, than the fact that she called me fat."
"The customers behind her were livid though, which was pretty cool lol."- firetomherman
That's What Friends Are For...
"'You're just a backup friend' from my supposed best friend after 17yrs of friendship...."- daydreamerbeats
Why? Just... Why?
"My brother and I were at Hastings checking out."
"Some Lady looked at my brother and said 'you look like Matt Damon'!"
"To which I replied 'What about me?'"
"She looked me up and down and said 'You look like Fat Damon'."
"Mind you, my brother and I are identical twins."- fecalpoo
In All Likelihood They're Going To Be Better Company...
"When my ex wife was leaving me for the person she cheated on me with, as she was walking out she said 'I’ll let you keep the dog. You’re going to need him'."
"Man that sh*t was cold."- falcfalcfalc
More Than Likely There Was Quid-Pro-Quo...
"I’m embarrassed to have been your mother."- spoonman-of-alcatraz
Nothing Can Be More Painful Than The Truth
"'Nobody likes you and you have no friends'."
"I heard that a lot in elementary school and middle school when I was a kid."
"It only hurt because it was true."
"But it hurt a lot."- Red_Store4
So Much For In Sickness And In Health...
"My wife told me she wouldn’t give me a back massage because I’m so fat she wouldn’t know where to start."- Difficult-Rough-1360
Subversive Motivation?
"'You have no future'."
"My mom when I was 17."
"26 and killing it, now she swears she believed in me all along."- Stormdrain11
The Passage Of Time Can Only Do So Much
"I'm too old to be thinking of this any more but it still is brutal for me."
"When I was in 7th grade, 2 other 7th graders were standing outside of the classroom my class was exiting from waiting for us to exit."
"They were saying 'Wow, look how diverse this class is, Mexican, black, Japanese, white...' etc."
"Then when they got to me, they said 'Ugly' and laughed."
"I'd never been called ugly before and I've never been called ugly since but that one has stuck with me."
"It's also low key hilarious."- WiggsMain
Even If She Didn't Mean It, Probably Shouldn't Have Had Kids...
"I was ten years old and I was being a little sh*t."
"My mother said 'sometimes I wish you were never born'."
"That was nearly 40 years ago and it still stings."
"On a positive note I made sure to never say anything like that to my kids no matter how frustrated I became."- tweakingforjesus
All of us have been guilty at some point in our lives of saying things we don't really mean.
Even so, as difficult as our emotions might be to control in certain situations, we should always remember to heed another warning our parents often instilled in us:
Choose your words carefully.
@lpeterp/Bluesky
@FPWellman/X
@bobsbeatgmail.com5/Threads
