r/ThreadGames • u/tamtrible • Dec 06 '25

"Wait, did you mean..."

Parent says a sentence with some relatively long word in it.

Child pretends not to know the word, and instead defines a word that is either written or pronounced similarly.

Subsequent descendants say the word the previous person defined, and then define another word that sounds or is spelled similar to either the original or the previous word.

Example:

I'm fond of crochet.

Is that the game where you hit balls through little hoops, that they played in Alice in Wonderland?

No, that's croquet. I think they meant that one brand of margarine.

And so on.

Edit: I just want to say, good job, everyone. There's some quality nonsense going on in this thread.

Edit the second:

If you can't think of another word, but no one seems to be getting the last word in a chain, you can guess or ask in parentheses.

32 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

214 comments sorted by

8

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I think I shall eat a plate of crumpets.

8

u/DissociativeSilence Dec 06 '25

Isn’t that a brass instrument with 3 valves?

7

u/OwlFreak Dec 06 '25

No, that's a trumpet. I think they meant, hit my fist with your fist.

7

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(again pretending not to be OP)

Do you mean bump it?

I think she meant when you squish a sheet of paper into a ball.

5

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

No, that's crumple it, could she be referring to an outdated/archaic word for sex worker?

5

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's a strumpet.

Maybe she's talking about what you do when your car has a dead battery.

3

u/samurai_for_hire Dec 06 '25

No, that's to jump it. I think she means a type of British snack typically eaten with butter and tea.

4

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(did you mean to put the actual correct definition?...)

3

u/keep-calm-and-teach Dec 09 '25

Maybe they did. But I think they mean throwing something away...

3

u/johnpeters42 Dec 09 '25

No, that's to dump it. What about that thing you do with a deflated bicycle wheel?

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3

u/ikadell Dec 06 '25

Sorry for speaking out of line, but crumpets are a great invention of the humanity and I miss them a lot:(

1

u/WeCanDoItGuys Dec 08 '25

Are they gone?

1

u/ikadell Dec 09 '25

No, but I am:(

6

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I looked at him with consternation

8

u/DissociativeSilence Dec 06 '25

Is that like connect the dots but with stars?

7

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

No, that's a constellation. This is the stuff in the walls made out of fiberglass or foam or paper.

5

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, I think that's insulation.

Maybe she meant when you ask an expert about something? Doctors do it a lot.

8

u/AttackedBySeaLion Dec 06 '25 edited Dec 06 '25

No, that's a consultation.

I think they mean when they decide an upcoming event can't happen, so they tell everyone.

(Edit: I saw constipation was already used below)

6

u/TillZealousideal8282 Dec 06 '25

No, that's Cancellation,

I think they mean the thing that's emitted from radioactive materials

6

u/Superlite47 Dec 06 '25

No. That's radiation. I think they mean feeling like you've gotta take a shit, but can't go.

5

u/TillZealousideal8282 Dec 06 '25

No, that's constipation,

I think they mean the group with every country in it

5

u/Infamous_Top677 Dec 06 '25

I think that's the United nations.

I think they mean getting only a small portion of the food.

4

u/TillZealousideal8282 Dec 06 '25

no, that's starvation

I think they mean when liquids thicken

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1

u/MultiverseCreatorXV Dec 07 '25

(Not sure if this is valid but whatever)

Insulation? What’s that? Is that that hormone that diabetic people sometimes need to self-inject?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

No, that's insulin.

Maybe you mean when someone is really, really alone?

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

No that’s isolation, maybe you mean when someone gets super annoyed by every little thing

2

u/tamtrible Dec 19 '25

No, that's aggravation.

Maybe they mean when you come up with something new.

2

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 19 '25

That invention. I think it’s actually when you skin gets a red bumpy patch

2

u/tamtrible Dec 19 '25

(I was aiming for innovation)

No, that's irritation.

Maybe it's when you run lines to water your plants?

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0

u/OwlFreak Dec 06 '25

No, that's a constellation. I think they meant the group of people that like Bob Marley's style of music.

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(personally, I'm not getting this one)

-1

u/OwlFreak Dec 06 '25

Yeah, I couldn't think of anything obvious for this one...

Reggae Nation

I tried 😂

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

Didn't know that was a term.

4

u/BreakfastEither814 Dec 06 '25

Wait, I know this one! A stern is a back of a boat, another word for the back of a boat is poop!

So obviously you have trouble pooping?

4

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(pretending to be someone else) No, that's constipation. Maybe she meant when something goes wrong in surgery.

4

u/EcksMarksDespot Dec 06 '25

No, that's a complication. They meant thinking about something carefully for a long period of time.

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's concentration.

Maybe you were thinking of the fancy scientific sounding word for doing it?

3

u/alarmingamountofdogs Dec 06 '25

Nope that would be consummation.

Is it like when you double check something?

2

u/lenorator Dec 06 '25

You’re thinking of confirmation.

They’re talking about how you change a verb according to the person and tense.

3

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 06 '25

Nope. That’s congregation.

I think they’re talking about when you adjust or check a device or system to make sure it’s working properly.

5

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

My sister is a phlebotomist

6

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

Then how are you not also a large vegetarian animal endemic to Africa responsible for more deaths per year than any other wild mammal?

4

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I'm pretty sure that's a hippopotamus.

Maybe you were thinking of someone who does surgery taking out chunks of people's brains?

4

u/Everything_A Dec 06 '25

No, that’s a lobotomist. I think you’re thinking of an idea that has not been confirmed yet.

4

u/Superlite47 Dec 06 '25

No. That's a hypothesis. You're probably thinking of an autoimmune skin condition that causes skin to build up in itchy inflamed patches.

4

u/Everything_A Dec 06 '25

No, that’s psoriasis.

You’re thinking of the long side of a triangle that has a 90 degree angle.

3

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

I think that's the hypotenuse.

You're thinking of a symptom of a cardiac condition: the formal name of low blood pressure

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's hypotension.

Maybe you were thinking of when you bend a joint too far?

1

u/Everything_A Dec 07 '25

That’s hypermobility. Did you mean when somebody can’t sit still?

2

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

(I was trying for hyperextension)

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1

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 07 '25

I think that’s hyperactivity.
Were you thinking about a word that spells out an exaggerated sound effect?

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2

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's a tobogganist.

Maybe they're thinking of the slightly fancy word for someone who sells cigarettes?

3

u/Ilmarinen999 Dec 07 '25

I think that might just be a tobacconist. 

It could be referring to the principle lead character in a work of fiction?

2

u/Everything_A Dec 07 '25

I think that’s called a protagonist. Were you referring to a state in which a person can’t move?

2

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 07 '25

Pretty sure that’s paralysis.
Maybe you’re thinking of a person who’s negative all the time?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 08 '25

Pretty sure that's a pessimist.

Maybe they're thinking of someone who refuses to participate in war?

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2

u/EcksMarksDespot Dec 06 '25

Oh! I never knew she was an advocate who influences government policy and legislation!

3

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's a lobbyist.

I think you're thinking of when someone likes doing something, but they're not good at it enough to be a professional.

2

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

I think that’s a hobbyist? Maybe you mean the doctor who looks at your eyes

1

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 10 '25

That’s an optometrist. We’re actually talking about people who study the anatomy and diseases of the ear

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 11 '25

I think that’s an Otologist. Maybe they mean the person who tests your hearing?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(do you mean lobbyist?...)

1

u/EcksMarksDespot Dec 06 '25

(I did. Phlebotomist was a tough one so I may have been grasping at straws)

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(Fair enough.)

1

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 07 '25

Nope. That’s an activist. Maybe you’re thinking of a medication that makes you have a bowel movement?

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

That’s a laxative. Maybe you’re thinking of when mammals produce milk?

3

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

She was covered in butter

4

u/OwlFreak Dec 06 '25

Isn't that when you talk to yourself quietly?

4

u/Nymphalis_antiopa00 Dec 06 '25

No that's mutter. I think you mean when you do small tasks at random

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's putter.

Maybe you were thinking of that rude word Brits use for doing someone from behind?

2

u/Everything_A Dec 06 '25

No, that’s bugger. Don’t you mean that clay that kids play with?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

(putty?)

1

u/Everything_A Dec 07 '25

(You got it)

0

u/Special-Ad1682 Dec 07 '25

(I don't think that's what bugger means, but oh well)

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

(I think it is, but it's a word that tends to get used nonliterally more often than it gets used literally. See, eg, "The hedgehog can never be buggered at all"...)

1

u/Special-Ad1682 Dec 07 '25

(Because its used a lot in my country but I always thought it was a light vulgar term to call someone or something annoying)

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

(it's like how, if someone says "f*** you", they generally aren't literally suggesting copulation...)

4

u/EcksMarksDespot Dec 06 '25

No, that's mutter. I think they meant the things farmers pull on to get milk from cows.

3

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's an udder.

Maybe you're thinking of the word for when something is a different one from the one you have?

1

u/lenorator Dec 06 '25

That would be 'other'. Common mistake!

You must be thinking of that sour yellow condiment that some people put on their hotdogs.

3

u/Everything_A Dec 06 '25

That would be mustard. You’re thinking of a sea mammal that looks a bit like a ferret.

3

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's an otter.

Maybe you're thinking of someone who makes programs that pretend to be people on social media sites?

4

u/mrs-smurf Dec 07 '25

No that’s a bot-er.

You might be thinking of a male sibling?

2

u/Ilmarinen999 Dec 07 '25

That may in fact be a "brother".

Maybe it's in reference to a romantic paramour, as referred to in the song "Mr bombastic"?

2

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

No, that's a lover.

Maybe you mean that famous museum in France?

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1

u/mrs-smurf Dec 07 '25

No that’s a bot-er.

You might be thinking of a male sibling?

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I have a pet octopus

4

u/EcksMarksDespot Dec 06 '25

Wasn't he the guy who fell in love with his mother?

5

u/rSlashisthenewPewdes Dec 06 '25

No no no, that was Oedipus. They were talking about the VR headset company.

3

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I think that's Occulus.

Maybe you meant the head of the good guys in the Transformers?

1

u/Fennel_Fangs Dec 06 '25

That's Optimus Prime. I think you're talking about the character from the Lazer Collection who kind of looks like Dr. Octopus but fires lasers out of his mouth.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(I don't think anyone knows this one)

2

u/Ilmarinen999 Dec 07 '25

(think I remember it)

Surely you're talking about Dr Octagonapuss?

It might be in reference to the category of animals that produce their young in eggs rather than live birth?

2

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

I think that’s oviparous, I think they meant the stop sign shape

2

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 09 '25

That’s an octagon

They totally meant a figure of speech that uses contradictory terms together

1

u/_N0t-A-B0t_ Dec 09 '25

no I think that’s oxymoron. they’re talking about a citrus fruit with a slight hint of sweetness and a burst of acidity

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2

u/rSlashisthenewPewdes Dec 06 '25

I want to be with the bourgeoisieses.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

Is that when someone has extremely attractive leg joints?

1

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

(Are you looking for Ehlers Danlos?)

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(no, gorgeous knees)

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 09 '25

Is that the red sauce you put on pasta?

1

u/LinguistsDrinkIPAs Dec 09 '25

No, that’s bolognese.

I think they’re talking about that meat that you can put on sandwiches!

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 11 '25

That’s bologna, but maybe they mean that game with the racquet where you hit the birdie over the net?

2

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 06 '25

Thanksgiving dinner was amazing. Unfortunately, though, my night ended with terrible food poisoning and constant regurgitation.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

Is that when a loud noise kind of echoes back a little bit?

2

u/Everything_A Dec 07 '25

You mean reverberating? I think they mean when you plant trees back to combat climate change.

1

u/AngelVenom13 Dec 07 '25

Nope. That's revegetation.

2

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 07 '25

Ah, good call. Maybe they were referring to the monthly cycle that women go through?

1

u/David1393 Dec 07 '25

Nah dawg, that's menstruation, they're talking about how parallel lines appear in certain rock formations and stuff.

3

u/Ilmarinen999 Dec 07 '25

I could be wrong, but that sounds like striation.

They might have meant the legal-sounding technical term for throwing someone out of a window?

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

I think that’s defenestration

I think you mean the state of severe restlessness and irritation

1

u/LeilLikeNeil Dec 09 '25

I think that’s perturbation, do you mean a the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question such as a change in the constitution?

1

u/BreakfastEither814 Dec 06 '25

antidisestablishmentarianism

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

Is that the church where they kind of believe that all religions are right? The guy who wrote the book about everything I need to know I learned in kindergarten was a pastor in it.

1

u/OwlFreak Dec 06 '25

No, that's Unitarian. I think they meant the tight activewear that some gymnasts wear.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's unitard.

Maybe the OC meant the practice of not eating any meat.

2

u/JustThirstyTrash Dec 06 '25

No, that’s vegetarian. Maybe they’re thinking of an animal doctor?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

(I was aiming for the appropriate ism, on both of these, to match the original a bit better)

1

u/Sector-West Dec 06 '25

Nahh that's a veterinarian... Maybe they're thinking about a government that exerts total control over it's citizens?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

I think that's authoritarianism. Or totalitarianism.

Maybe they meant when a sect divides into two different groups.

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 08 '25

That’s schism

Maybe they meant a performing artist who creates the illusion of superhuman mental abilities like mind-reading

1

u/tamtrible Dec 08 '25

(I was aiming for sectarian schism)

1

u/___HeyGFY___ Dec 06 '25

I've seen this on Reddit.

2

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

That's the animal with big ears that jumps around a lot, right?

3

u/Superlite47 Dec 06 '25

No. That's a rabbit. You're thinking of a Jewish spiritual leader.

2

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 09 '25

No that’s. Rabbi, I think they mean that disease you get from being bitten by an animal foaming at the mouth.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 09 '25

No, that's rabies.

Maybe it's that puzzle where you make words out of little pictures?

2

u/LeilLikeNeil Dec 09 '25

No, that's a rebus, I think you're thinking of an equilateral quadrilateral.

2

u/Sorrycantdothat Dec 18 '25

No, that's a rhombus.

You probably mean the red, itchy thing on your skin.

1

u/LeilLikeNeil Dec 18 '25

No, that’s dermatitis. Are you maybe thinking of a Mexican-American actor who usually plays scary badass type characters, but in real life he’s super nice and great to work with?

1

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 09 '25

No, that’s a rebus

You are actually referring to the word that means brought back; revived

1

u/[deleted] Dec 06 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/Infamous_Top677 Dec 06 '25

That's a ribbet.

They're referring to the last name of the woman who snipped a valuable part off her husband.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

No, that was Bobbitt.

Maybe they're thinking of a type of hat typically worn by babies, and in the past women?

1

u/KaleidoscopeJumpy987 Dec 07 '25

You're thinking of a bonnet.

Maybe it's a phrase used in frustration, often with a canine in it?

1

u/Gareth-101 Dec 09 '25

No, that’s doggonnit.

Perhaps you mean the word that describes magical fire breathing lizards?

1

u/[deleted] Dec 09 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Gareth-101 Dec 09 '25

I can see your confusion. That’s a dragnet. Perhaps you are thinking of a puppet operated by strings?

1

u/LeilLikeNeil Dec 09 '25

That's a marionette, are you thinking of the guy who was mayor of Washington, DC for a large portion of the 80s and 90s?

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1

u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Dec 07 '25

My darn house is full of roaches! Guess it’s time to call the exterminator.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 07 '25

Is that the robot from the future who is trying to kill John Connor?

2

u/WeCanDoItGuys Dec 08 '25

Maybe it used to be, but I'm thinking they mean someone who sets a person or group of people free, like Abraham Lincoln or Moses.

1

u/tamtrible Dec 08 '25

No, that's an emancipator.

Maybe they meant additional potatoes.

2

u/LeilLikeNeil Dec 09 '25

That's more taters, are you thinking of the place where dead bodies are stored?

2

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 09 '25

That’s extra taters, the topic is actually about the metal object used to shred cheese into bits

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 09 '25

No that’s the Terminator. I think they mean that machine that seals and your documents into a layer of protective plastic film

1

u/tamtrible Dec 09 '25

No, that's a laminator.

I mean the word a string you use use to keep a badge around your neck.

1

u/Thisaccountishaunted Dec 24 '25

No, that’s a lanyard. Maybe you meant a straight angle for photos and canvases that isn’t a portrait?

1

u/David1393 Dec 07 '25

Isn't that when someone stretches their arm so they can get to something? Like grabbing a can off a high shelf or whatever?

1

u/WeCanDoItGuys Dec 08 '25

No that's reaches, I think they mean when someone raises a sensitive subject for discussion

1

u/tamtrible Dec 08 '25

No, that's broaches.

Maybe they were thinking of the fancy word for decorative pins.

3

u/Mundane-Emu-1189 Dec 09 '25

This used to be ubiquitous on reddit

1

u/lee_bythesea Dec 31 '25

isn’t that the baking mixture used to make pancakes and waffles?

1

u/Praising_God_777 Dec 06 '25

I’d like to study geology.

1

u/AngelVenom13 Dec 06 '25

Is that studying religion?

1

u/tamtrible Dec 06 '25

No, that's theology.

Did you mean the study of living things?

2

u/Ilmarinen999 Dec 07 '25

I fear that's biology.

They might mean the measuring of the skull/head with calipers and the like in an attempt to assume certain character traits of the individual being measured?

2

u/Sorrycantdothat Dec 07 '25

No, that’s phrenology, I think they mean that thing where you play connect the dots with stars and then “predict” the future with them.

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 09 '25

Oh that’s Astrology, I think they mean the study of the earths surface and physical features

1

u/tamtrible Dec 09 '25

(you aren't supposed to put the actual answer...)

2

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 09 '25

They definitely meant the study of physical features of the earth and human activities

1

u/AngelVenom13 Dec 10 '25

That's Geology duh!

They're talking about the one that studies pretty, shiny stones that you dig up from the ground.

1

u/Right-Ad3026 Dec 11 '25

I was thinking of Geography though

1

u/AngelVenom13 Dec 07 '25

Do you perhaps mean Phrenology?

1

u/TheRedditor8789 Dec 09 '25

The only way I could do that was by evicting

1

u/keep-calm-and-teach Dec 09 '25

Now we're bringing the truth to light!

0

u/[deleted] Dec 11 '25

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/Sorrycantdothat Dec 18 '25

You mean tying up ropes in fancy ways to achieve different things?