# "Is this a thing?" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 31, 2012, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615 "2012-05-31T02:44:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/1 "2012-05-31T02:44:12Z")
I’ve seen this usage pop up on the intertubes in the past year or two, apparently as a means of indicating skepticism over whether a certain phenomenon is real or genuine. Did it have some particular origin? How do you read it, have you ever used it, and what do you think of it? Will it last? In short, is this a thing? ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/2 "2012-05-31T03:27:21Z")
Oh yes, “Is this a thing?” is a thing. I have heard it on TV (on “How I Met Your Mother,” maybe) and seen it online ([Cracked.com](http://Cracked.com)?). I do not think it means “is this real or genuine?” however, more like “is this really something that people say, or talk about?” I think “thing” here is more like “meme” or “fashionable idea” than “object”. Perhaps I should admit, though, that I am too old and out of touch to know if it is something the kids really say. Maybe, if it is on TV already, they have stopped saying it IRL by now. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/3 "2012-05-31T03:32:22Z")
I don’t know if there’s a direct connection, but the Letterman show has had an occasional bit called “Is This Anything?” for several years, at least. They raise a curtain to reveal some kind of novelty act, a guy juggling on a unicycle or something, and then ponder its significance. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/4 "2012-05-31T03:37:57Z")
For me, “is this a thing” means “is this a trend/meme/something of that nature that is somewhat widespread or is it just peculiar to this person or a very small group of individuals.” For example, somehow, I missed the whole planking meme. When I first saw it on _The Office_, I wondered to myself “is this a thing, or just something made up for the show parodying the ridiculousness of Internet memes.” Unfortunately, it was, indeed, a thing. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/5 "2012-05-31T03:52:18Z")
I tend to use it in the negative: “that’s not even a thing!” ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/6 "2012-05-31T04:24:07Z")
I first heard it on “Seinfeld” re-runs\* phrased as, “Is that even a thing?” \*I didn’t watch it when it first aired. * * * Sent from my **TRS-80** via _Compuserve_ ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/7 "2012-05-31T04:30:50Z")
I use the term. I’m a totally un-hip 41 year old woman for what that’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/8 "2012-05-31T04:46:07Z")
I googled “is this a thing” (with quotation marks). Looking at the first page of results, most of them more clearly fit into the “does this thing exist?” category than the “is this a trend?” category. If someone is more determined (or less lazy) than I, feel free to analyze more results. I’ll try to categorize them: Why is this a thing? (A blog featuring questionable inventions.) **Existence** Is this a thing? Men’s Pantie Stocking (NSFW). (Questions if the manufacturer of the pictured item exists.) **Existence** Why is this a thing? (Strange picture in a video game.) **Existence** Is this a thing? Is a brain dvr – a thing yet? I want one so bad! **Existence** Dual memory cards - is this a thing yet? So my question is, does this exist in any modern dSLR…? **Existence** Post-Game Thread: Is This A Thing? (I can’t figure out what this one is questioning.) **Unknown** Why is this a thing?! Just… why?! (Video about Magic Pony genitals. I can’t figure this out either.) **Unknown** Is This a Thing? I know this is a weird question to ask. But I want to know if a gate set-up like what I am about to show you is a thing in real life. (Wants to know if a gate set up has ever been used in a battle.) **Existence** Bipolar Editing Disorder – Is This A Thing? It Should Be. **Existence** First was Planking, is this a thing now? (Humorous picture captions.) **Trend** ---
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/9 "2012-05-31T17:35:23Z")
I use it to say “is this an issue? Is it important enough, really, to even be discussing?” ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/10 "2012-05-31T18:01:01Z")
I sometimes say it. > [@njtt](#): > > Oh yes, “Is this a thing?” is a thing. I have heard it on TV (on “How I Met Your Mother,” maybe) and seen it online ([Cracked.com](http://Cracked.com)?). Also on Family Guy. The only instance I remember was when Brian was showing Stewie the 2girls1cup video. At first Stewie was grossed out, then he wondered if two guys could do that. “Is that even a thing?” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/11 "2012-05-31T18:01:03Z")
Here’s [urbandictionary.com](http://urbandictionary.com)’s take on [“a thing”](http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=a+thing): > [@](#): > > An action, fashion style, philosophy, musical genre, or other popularly recognized subsection of popular culture. Normally used in surprise at it’s existence. Becomes official when a wikipedia article is created for it. > “Whats the deal with those skin-tight body suits?” > "Oh, you mean Zentai? > “Huh. I didn’t know that was a thing.” The other definitions for “a thing” are the romantic sense of it, as in having a thing for someone. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/12 "2012-05-31T18:07:04Z")
I should add that of course it could be used to ask about existence; it’s all about context. When I use it, it’s obvious that the item exists and I am asking whether it’s, as the urbandictionary definition puts it, a “recognized subsection of popular culture.” ---
**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:** [May 31, 2012, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/13 "2012-05-31T18:11:47Z")
Bill Hader’s fantastic SNL character “Stefon” starts some of his club descriptions with “You know that thing where…” followed by something completely off the wall that nobody in the world has ever heard of. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/14 "2012-05-31T18:13:33Z")
The usage must go back at least decades. In the 60s there was a ‘do your own thing’ concept that has that meaning. The ‘thing’ it refers to is traditional conformist activity, and heralded a rise of individualism. But humans being what they are, lots of individuals ended up doing the same ‘thing’. As social interaction has grown with the media, social ‘things’ have risen, and the natural phrasing of a question regarding them would be ‘is that a thing?’ ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/15 "2012-05-31T19:33:12Z")
I use it. It’s shorthand for saying “I’m an old fogey and do not know what is ‘cool.’ I am bewildered by what I’m seeing or hearing. However, I do remember that in the distant past, I participated in fads, wore clothing, or used slang that bewildered my elders and this reminds me of that. So, young whippersnapper, please tell me whether this is what the kids are doing these days or if it is actually strange.” Don’t know where I picked it up, but a I grow even older and farther away from what’s trendy, it’s a very useful phrase. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/16 "2012-05-31T19:45:22Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > The usage must go back at least decades. In the 60s there was a ‘do your own thing’ concept that has that meaning. I’m not really sure if that counts. I suppose the thinginess of “do your own thing” and “is that a thing” are similar, but it feels like a stretch. Back in the 1880s or so, thing was an insult. As in “You’re a thing.” ---
**Author:** ![Rod\_Schmidt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/919ad9/32.png) [@Rod\_Schmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rod_Schmidt)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/17 "2015-04-09T10:40:08Z")
Seems to me it’s used in the same sense as “there’s no suich thing as x” or its negation “there is such a thing as x” which would be synonymous with “x is a thing” ---
**Author:** ![MorphinePoet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morphinepoet/32/7315_2.png) [@MorphinePoet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MorphinePoet)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/18 "2015-04-09T10:43:56Z")
There is also “How is this still a thing?” or John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight show. My favorite segment was about Ayn Rand. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/19 "2015-04-09T10:52:27Z")
IMO the best spin-off of E!'s _The Soup_, namely G4’s _[Web Soup](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_Soup)_ hosted by Chris Hardwick used to have a segment specifically called _ **“Is that Even a Thing?!”** _. It was used to show web videos that were both odd and had a sexual fetish theme. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615/20 "2015-04-09T10:53:36Z")
It is what it is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-a-thing/623615.md?page=2)