Yeah, No...

In My Humble Opinion
1

This is probably one of those “critical mass” things where I finally got overexposed to something to the point that it started bugging me a bit, and then, oversensitized, noticed it everywhere when actually it had been there all along… maybe.

Here’s the deal: one of my girlfriends keeps saying “yeah, no” in conversation. The usual pattern is something like this:

Her: My lips are chapped but it’s so cold the chap stick is so hard it hurts to smear it on my lips

Me: I know, that’s why I don’t like those. I use this skiers lip balm instead, it’s easier to use.

Her: Yeah, no. I think that stuff is better too but I can’t always find it.
I guess it parses like “yeah (I agree with the point you just made) / and no (I wasn’t intending to assert otherwise, lest you think maybe I did)” – ??

… but she does it all the time and then I started noticing that she does it all the time… BUT umm now I notice that SO DOES EVERYONE ELSE ?~!??!???

Is it just me? Is it only me who isn’t in on the meme? What’s the deal?

poll forthcoming…

2

I’ve heard the phrase before, or something similar, but not often at all. But I get your point about the critical mass bit. “Yeah, no…” sounds a bit weaselly to me though, sort of like Lumberg in Office Space. “Yeah, we’re gonna have to move you to the Pit of Despair. If you could just stomp on some rats, that’d be great. Okay? Fine.”

3

Does it always occur as a prefix to “A but B” statements? Sort of indicating that the answer will be going in two directions?

In effect, “Yeah, I think that stuff is better too. But no, [I don’t use it because] I can’t always find it.”

4

I use it rarely, in a sarcastic or biting context. Usually spoken but occasionally typed. Example:

Stupid Tank: That shaman is an idiot, he should have re-hexed his raid mark after I broke it!
Smart Healer: Yeah no, hex has a 45 second cooldown, shit-for-brains.

5

I’ve only ever heard it as “Yeaaaaaaahhhhhh… no.” as in “I’m considering your suggestion, aaaaaand, you’re a moron.”

6

My friend from NY does this all the time in conversation.

“Do you like this?”

“Yeah. No, it’s really nice.”

“You didn’t answer me.”

“Yeah? No, I did.”

It drives me nuts, but he’s from NY and therefore unreprogrammable. So I just let him wander around like a verbal landmine.

7

That’s exactly how I use it. Not all that often. Usually in a funny way, because otherwise it would be pretty assy. Ultimately meaning, “NO.”

8

In the OP conversation, I kinda pictured it as “yeah, I know” all smushed together.

9

Oh, sure. The contrast between the drawn-out yeah and the quick no cutting it off.

I took the OP to mean that the words were pronounced as equivalents–like, on the one hand, on the other.

10

Oh, I did too, I’ve just never actually heard it that way. Apparently it’s a verbal tic that hasn’t made it’s way to Boston yet.

11

I don’t think I’ve heard it much, but when I do start to hear it, I’m sure it will irritate me, too. :slight_smile:

12

This is how I’ve heard/said it as well.

13

Yes, this, and not yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhh, NO.

Just Yeah. No.

Like someone flooring the accelerator and jamming on the brakes at the same time. Seriously disconcerting.

14

This is what the OP was referring to. It starts at 3:00.

15

The way it’s always parsed in my circles is:

Yeah I heard what you just said, no that’s not even close to correct.

16

I thought this was just an Aussie thing! We tend to say it all the time and I tend to think it’s meaning is more like this.

“I thought you were going to the movies?”
“yeah (we were originally/I can see why you thought that), no we’re going to dinner instead”

EDIT: yes also as feppytweed said

17

I don’t recall ever hearing it, and I’m still not sure what it means.

18

Yeah, no it hasn’t made it out here either, oh, I think it just arrived :eek:

19

Yeah, no don’t use it.

20

Yeah, no that’s one of ours alright.

Read all about it :wink: