# "I saw what you did there" **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [September 22, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215 "2015-09-22T16:19:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/1 "2015-09-22T16:19:25Z")
Sometimes I see this in posts and it’s witty (sort of) and clear enough what it means from the context (sort of). But I also have the sense that there’s more to it, a subtext, history, or etymology (possibly entomology) that I don’t know about, having been here only five years and having authored only ~6,000 posts. Is there deep background on this, and am I permitted to know? I understand if I’m too much of a newbie. I can wait. Humbly, ThelmaLou ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/2 "2015-09-22T16:27:24Z")
It just means that somebody made a seemingly “clever” joke, usually wordplay or an obscure reference, and the person is letting them know that they picked up on it. If you don’t get it, then you didn’t get the joke or reference. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/3 "2015-09-22T16:27:35Z")
I’ve always understood it to mean “Your sly, subtle, or obscure joke/reference/pun/allusion did not go unnoticed. I’m letting you know that I noticed and appreciated it, and pointing out for the benefit of others who may have missed it that there was something going on there.” ---
**Author:** ![dba\_Fred](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c37758/32.png) [@dba\_Fred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dba_Fred)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/4 "2015-09-22T16:28:03Z")
:dubious: Are you really _really_ sure you want to see what I did there??? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/5 "2015-09-22T16:41:31Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Sometimes I see this in posts and it’s witty (sort of) and clear enough what it means from the context (sort of). But I also have the sense that there’s more to it, a subtext, history, or etymology (possibly entomology) that I don’t know about, having been here only five years and having authored only ~6,000 posts. > > Is there deep background on this, and am I permitted to know? > > I understand if I’m too much of a newbie. I can wait. > Humbly, > ThelmaLou It’s not just an SDMB thing. People use it all over the internet. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/6 "2015-09-22T16:43:24Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I’ve always understood it to mean “Your sly, subtle, or obscure joke/reference/pun/allusion did not go unnoticed. I’m letting you know that I noticed and appreciated it, and pointing out for the benefit of others who may have missed it that there was something going on there.” I would have said the same thing. It’s a “wink, wink, nudge, nudge” sort of thing. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Nylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/77aa72/32.png) [@Mr.Nylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Nylock)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/7 "2015-09-22T16:47:21Z")
I made an obscure joke about something mechanical a while back; it whooshed some people, but one person got it. For someone to have gotten it they would have to have spent a decent amount of time working on cars, trucks, bikes etc. What I’m getting at is that I think these references can be obscure and particular to what you do for a living or what your hobbies are, not a measure of intelligence or dope knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/8 "2015-09-22T17:03:47Z")
Okay, I’ve been getting it. And appreciating it. > [@Tangent](#): > > It’s not just an SDMB thing. People use it all over the internet. WHAT?? There are other message boards on the internet? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/9 "2015-09-22T17:04:23Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Okay, I’ve been getting it. And appreciating it. > WHAT?? There are other message boards on the internet? :eek: Rumor has it. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/10 "2015-09-22T17:09:32Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Rumor has it. You know what would be neat? A message board about rumors. ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/11 "2015-09-22T17:11:44Z")
I’ve heard from a couple of sources that such a thing exists. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/12 "2015-09-22T17:32:58Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > It’s not just an SDMB thing. People use it all over the internet. It originated with Phil Collins. He witnessed someone refusing to help a n00b who was being flamed. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/13 "2015-09-22T17:37:04Z")
ISWYDT 🙂 caps ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/14 "2015-09-22T18:20:24Z")
I use it only when I don’t want to take away the joy of someone else figuring it out. It’s just a clue that there’s something there, without any remote hint on what it is. If I really think it’s obscure, I’ll continue the joke. In most cases, it’s a reference, so I’ll quote something else from the same source. That way people who know the source but missed the reference will see it. That said, sometimes I wish people would post a spoiler about what they did. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/15 "2015-09-22T18:52:09Z")
A waste of electrons. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/16 "2015-09-22T19:31:54Z")
Apparently this started on _Friends_ of all places. > **[I See What You Did There](https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-see-what-you-did-there)** > > “I See What You Did There”, sometimes shortened as ICWYDT or ISWYDT, is a phrase typically found online either in comments or captions for image macros. Depending on its tone, it can convey a condescending response to a banal joke, a genuine... ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/17 "2015-09-22T19:43:48Z")
It’s even better when you detect a clever bit of wordplay that the author of the post didn’t even realize he or she had penned. And that after re-reading his or her post, the author “gets it”. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/18 "2015-09-22T20:44:21Z")
When I’m bored, I just use it while quoting random posts, since I like to picture Dopers being slowly driven insane trying to figure out what obscure reference or pun they missed. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/19 "2015-09-22T20:46:15Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > When I’m bored, I just use it while quoting random posts, since I like to picture Dopers being slowly driven insane trying to figure out what obscure reference or pun they missed. I see what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215/20 "2015-09-22T21:26:36Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > …having been here only five years and having authored only ~6,000 posts… > I understand if I’m too much of a newbie… “Five Years a Newb.” I’d watch that. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-what-you-did-there/732215.md?page=2)