“We’ve all had those moments of realization where we kick ourselves for not knowing something sooner. Whether it’s realizing the earth is round in high school or that tomatoes are actually fruits, it’s always a little embarrassing. But don’t worry, you’re not alone! A Reddit user recently asked people to share some of the things they learned embarrassingly late in life and their answers will have you laughing and nodding in agreement.”
1.
I live near the Hospital for Joint Diseases….when I was a kid I thought it was a special hospital for people who had two different diseases at the same time.
~ Baffhy_Duck
2.
When people say quote unquote I thought they were saying quote on quote
~ LF_redit
3.
My sister was in her 50’s when she found out the meaning of: “you have an addictive personality”. She thought after all these years of therapy that it meant that people were addicted to her personality. We laugh hysterically when we talk about this (in a very sad way).
~ casper02127
4.
Until I was in school for environmental studies, I thought “mourning dove” was “morning dove.” I usually heard them calling in the mornings, so “morning” made sense to me.
~ boldolive
5.
I thought that ‘prima donna’ was ‘pre-Madonna’ and that it meant everything before the singer Madonna and just assumed she was some kind of universal queen.
~ vienna_versailles
6.
I learned that pork and beans are not called “cowboy beans”. I was 18 and asked a grocery store clerk to help me find the “cowboy beans”. We were looking everywhere and I was getting frustrated because I know that every store carries these beans. After a while I pick up a pork and beans can with a picture and say “see, it looks just like this!” He says “you mean pork and beans?” Then I realize that my mom called them that so that I would eat them. The look of disappointment from that grocery store clerk haunts me to this day.
~ whyunoletmepost
7.
I was taught it’s fine to flush tampons down the toilet, and would even flush pads, and sponges when I’d clean the bathroom. I didn’t learn that it was a huge no no until sometime in my mid to late 20’s. I’m surprised the pipes at the house I grew up in weren’t constantly exploding.
~ edie_the_egg_lady
8.
That Bonsai are not a species of tree, but a way to grow them. Any tree can be a bonsai.
~ ixent
9.
Just this week I found out about the little button on the back of the socket driver that pushes the socket off. I have owned the same socket set for about 30 years, and I have a dedicated screwdriver that I keep with my sockets and use to pry them off when I’m done using them.
I will be 55 years old soon.
~ ScaryNation
10.
I was like, 22? working at a restaurant making myself a salad, and I asked the chef for bumps and he stared at me for like, 60 solid seconds trying to figure out what I wanted. I explained to him I wanted bumps for my salad. I have all the rest of the toppings but now needed bumps.
Guys … my family told me croutons were called bumps my entire life. I called my dad that night and confirmed that bumps are indeed, actually called croutons.
~ BronNatsPulisic
11.
I though Mick Jagger’s name was McJagger, and people just never said his first name for some reason.
~ AcuteHazard
12.
That you don’t have to stand in the shower while the water warms up.
~ MagicPieBush
13.
When I was in college (21/22 years old), I was getting ready to go out and it hit me like a lightning bolt – if you just thread the small end of the belt through your belt loops all the way around, literally any belt can fit your pants! Because up until then, I thought sometimes I just had belt loops that were too small for certain belt buckles. I ran out to my friends and was like “Guys – check this out!” as I proceeded to demonstrate for them what I had just learned. I genuinely thought they’d be excited for me? It was then I learned that everyone else on earth knew the right way to wear a belt except my dumb ass.
~ Trenuk13
14.
This is something my little sister did through high school. We’re about 8 years apart so we never overlapped in school.
She’s always been a straight-A student, and I found out she worked extra hard because she “wanted to catch up to me” in school. So we could be in school at the same time.
I almost cried.
~ rebel_croissant
15.
You don’t have to rip the plastic top off of your new deodorant with your teeth or pliers or anything. You can just turn the base until it comes up enough to just take it off.
~ SanibelMan
16.
I thought that horses had toes until I was 22. I thought the hoof was a “horseshoe” and the toes were tucked inside.
How did I learn how wrong I was, you ask?
I was walking past a cavalry museum and saw a horse statue and loudly remarked “it must hurt so bad when they fold a horse’s toes to put them into the shoe!” Dozens of horse enthusiasts turned and looked at me with wild bewilderment in their eyes.
~ BronNatsPulisic
17.
I think I was in college when I realized that Mario and Luigi are plumbers. I thought they just went and up down these tubes just because that was the theme of the game
~ dontbemystalker
18.
I was probably 21 or 22 when I learned that whole milk is only 3% fat. I always thought it was 100, and when I saw reduced as being 2% I thought “why wouldn’t they do 50% or somewhere in the middle?”
~ willk95
19.
the saying is: “Nip it in the bud” and not in fact *nip it in the butt*
~ too_sharp
20.
Birds have sex. I thought that the mother bird laid the egg and the father fertilised it later. I was 18 and asked my mother what the birds were doing…
~ drittinnlegg
21.
Houston is not the name of the guy astronauts talk to
~ vienna_versailles
22.
A few months ago 2 of my colleagues both handed in their notice at around the same time. I kept reading/hearing the sentence ‘they’re both moving on to pastures new’ being thrown about the office in the weeks leading up to them leaving and I hadn’t heard this phrase before and thought that was the name of the rival company that they were going to. I thought it was weird that nobody was talking about how they were both leaving for the same company.
I was in the car with one of the ones who was leaving and said ‘so where is that you and X are going to be working? Is it..’ and just before I could embarrass myself and say ‘pastures new’, they interrupted me and said they’re not going to the same place and asked me where I had heard that. I think at that moment I realised I was stupid and didn’t mention it again.
~ WorriedSoft
23.
That pineapples grow on the ground, and not in a tree
~ MR-LIBERIA
24.
Learned this yesterday, actually… apparently you need to RSVP to events even if you will not be attending.
~ corteser
25.
I suspected it was the same with lots of people but I found out it wasn’t gorilla warfare but guerrilla warfare maybe in my twenties.
The disappoints of growing up… they just keep coming.
~ octoriceball
26.
That you’re supposed to close the toilet lid before flushing otherwise the poop particles spray all over the bathroom.
~ AwkwardSilence1
27.
I was 19 when I learned that women have to give birth (or at least be pregnant) to have breast milk. I’d always thought that it’s available at all times.
I was a very sheltered kid. Don’t judge me.
~ krukson
28.
When I was really young my sister told me she threw her guts out. So I was really afraid of vomiting my entire insides up for years.
~ Prestigious_Sweet_50
29.
I didn’t know tortilla chips were made out of tortillas until I was 20 years old and saw the line cook at my job cut up a tortilla and throw it in the deep fryer
~ oceanfishie
30.
“This little piggy went to market” isn’t about shopping! Finally realized that much too late.
~ ElRyan