# Atheists: When someone sneezes, do you say... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 8, 2016, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514 "2016-01-08T18:49:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/21 "2016-01-08T20:38:57Z")
Instead of the full “gesundheit” I just say “gesund.” I know it’s wrong – I’m saying “healthy” instead of “health” – but it’s shorter and quicker and gets the point across. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/22 "2016-01-08T20:39:30Z")
I don’t say anything. I’m agnostic, but my wife, who is atheist, always say gesundheit. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/23 "2016-01-08T20:40:29Z")
I say “bless you” or “God bless you”. I also say “Jesus!” when I’m surprised, often sigh “For Pete’s sake . . .” and am quite fond of “god_damn_”. Some people are bad Catholics; I’m a bad atheist. More of an agnostic, really. (See?!) ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/24 "2016-01-08T20:47:31Z")
When I sneeze - if some one says ‘Gesundheit’ - I usually respond with ’ …comes out loose!’ ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/25 "2016-01-08T20:58:34Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > I’m an Agnostic Areligionist, so hopefully that’s close enough to Atheist… > > I usually say ‘bless you’, but it is more a reflex than any conscious think about it. Like saying 'oops ’ (when you drop something) or &(\*^^%^& (when you drop something on your toes). I usually just go with non-religious but that works pretty well. I’m the same way. It seems silly to say anything but I say “Bless you” as a reflex expression. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/26 "2016-01-08T21:01:08Z")
I say nothing and continue on as if it didn’t happen ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/27 "2016-01-08T21:02:20Z")
“Blessings of the Old Gods upon you…” ---
**Author:** ![brainstall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@brainstall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brainstall)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/28 "2016-01-08T21:09:26Z")
Non-religious, but I say “Bless you”, anyway. As others have said, it’s the polite thing to do. At my office, you’ll get a bless you for the first or second sneeze, but if you keep it up, someone will say, “Shut Up!”. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/29 "2016-01-08T21:26:50Z")
I don’t say anything to others. I have trained some of my coworkers who sit near me to respond with “Shut up!” when I sneeze. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/30 "2016-01-08T21:49:16Z")
Gesundheit for me. From a TV story about a South African winemaker, I learned that some folks say it for a toast. It means “to your health,” like **Frodo’s** “salud” does. It’s trickier than you might think to keep God-speak out of your vocabulary. Many of our emotional words are minced God-speak. Not just goldurn, Godfrey Daniels, jeeez, and gee whiz, either. Egad, sacre bleu, gah, zounds (God’s wounds), blimey, (God blind me), dagnabbit, and dog my cats all come from deity references. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/31 "2016-01-08T22:46:14Z")
I get extremely annoyed if anybody interrupts a train of thought (mine or his/hers) to say anything at all. Especially if there is an ongoing conversation taking place about some topic other than sneeze cosmology. ---
**Author:** ![FluffyBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@FluffyBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FluffyBob)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/32 "2016-01-08T22:47:55Z")
I am confused why anyone feels the need to say anything when someone else sneezes. If I sneeze, I say ‘excuse me’ to bystanders, because I just made a loud noise (and potentially blew a mist of snot and and nastiness in the air). It mildly annoys me when others bless me or even say gesundheit. It’s pointless and arcane. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/33 "2016-01-08T23:41:22Z")
We say “[Gonzaga](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzaga_University)” but that joke only works in Spokane or eastern Washington. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Aro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b3f665/32.png) [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/34 "2016-01-08T23:56:34Z")
I say nothing- it’s just a simple sneeze and requires no comment. ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2016, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/35 "2016-01-08T23:57:35Z")
I say gesundheit or bless you. It’s a social acknowledgement not a literal prayer or sermon or missionary attack. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/36 "2016-01-09T00:21:39Z")
> [@Aro](#): > > I say nothing- it’s just a simple sneeze and requires no comment. Yep. I don’t feel the need to say anything when someone coughs, burps, or farts, why should I say something to someone when they sneeze? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/37 "2016-01-09T02:55:34Z")
I say “[Didja Get Any Onya?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFWiJAYmADQ)” ---
**Author:** ![plankter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ba0ec/32.png) [@plankter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plankter)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/38 "2016-01-09T03:06:58Z")
“Salut” or “salud”. I’m a Yank incidentally. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/39 "2016-01-09T03:15:44Z")
Nothing at all. It’s a weird social custom that I didn’t grow up with, as in no one in my family said anything at all. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2016, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514/40 "2016-01-09T03:33:57Z")
I don’t say anything. Same as when someone coughs or yawns. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atheists-when-someone-sneezes-do-you-say/742514.md?page=3)