# Please decipher this saying on a t-shirt **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [June 11, 2024, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737 "2024-06-11T14:32:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![salinqmind1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@salinqmind1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind1)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/1 "2024-06-11T14:32:37Z")
In the endless ads online for Temu, for fathers day they are peddling t-shirts with sayings, and one of them goes: “I Love My Wife but sometimes I want to square up.” I looked it up for a definition, still don’t get it? What does this mean? ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/2 "2024-06-11T14:35:42Z")
Square up for a fight or even the score. Still doesn’t make a lot of sense. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/3 "2024-06-11T15:03:32Z")
I think “square up” makes sense in the context of a fight. “I love her even though sometimes there’s conflict between us.” One would hope the wearer of the shirt is simply talking about arguments, but there’s a physicality to the expression “square up” that a lot of folks would object to. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/4 "2024-06-11T15:05:17Z")
It’s about fighting. You can get the same shirt about your husband as well. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/5 "2024-06-11T15:05:29Z")
I agree with these interpretations (as my skin crawls). ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/6 "2024-06-11T15:07:50Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > It’s about fighting. You can get the same shirt about your husband as well. But why would you? Perhaps it explains why they don’t get along. I don’t think my wife would appreciate such a shirt (and I don’t know why she would buy it for me. She buys all my t-shirts). ---
**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:** [June 11, 2024, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/7 "2024-06-11T15:12:49Z")
> [@salinqmind1](#): > > “I Love My Wife but sometimes I want to square up.” > > I looked it up for a definition, still don’t get it? What does this mean? Weird. I don’t get it either. I googled it, and apparently such shirts are for sale at various sites (only with the wording “wanna” instead of “want to”), including Etsy, Amazon, and Walmart, but nowhere did I see an explanation (or any customer comments or ratings). My WAG is that it’s an instance of [Engrish](https://engrish.com/): either a bad translation of something that made more sense in the original language, or an attempt by someone with a weak grasp of the English language to come up with something that sounds clever. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/8 "2024-06-11T15:15:30Z")
Just Redneck English. I understood it. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/9 "2024-06-11T15:17:49Z")
What’s hard to get? “I love my wife, but sometimes I want to fight her.” It’s one more in a long line of dumb trashy t-shirts aimed at the, uh less discerning market, typically seen on People of Walmart type sites. ---
**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:** [June 11, 2024, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/10 "2024-06-11T15:18:18Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Just Redneck English. I understood it. Sonya Deville, a woman wrestler used the catch-phrase “Put your hair up and square up”. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/11 "2024-06-11T15:19:38Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > either a bad translation of something that made more sense in the original language, or an attempt by someone with a weak grasp of the English language to come up with something that sounds clever Nah, there’s a subset of the population that gets off on conflict. I dated a woman years ago who said she didn’t think the relationship was “healthy” unless we were open about our disagreements, which sounds good, but it translated into her picking a fight on a weekly basis if we hadn’t already had one. She would have bought this shirt immediately. (And before you ask, no, I didn’t date her very long, because it was stupid and exhausting.) I don’t know why you’d want to advertise your emotional dysfunction on a t-shirt, but evidently there’s a market. ---
**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:** [June 11, 2024, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/12 "2024-06-11T15:22:12Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Just Redneck English. I understood it. I was unfamiliar with the phrase “square up,” at least in that context. I thought it meant to make things even, either literally (as in aligning the corners of a stack of paper) or figuratively (as in paying a debt). ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/13 "2024-06-11T15:40:16Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > > > Just Redneck English. I understood it. > > I was unfamiliar with the phrase “square up,” at least in that context. I thought it meant to make things even, either literally (as in aligning the corners of a stack of paper) or figuratively (as in paying a debt). - The phrase is “square off” in terms of preparing to fight a person. Engrish as pointed out by @Thudlow_Boink . ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/14 "2024-06-11T15:50:19Z")
I guess it’s supposed to be some sort of modernized version of the “I love you Alice, but one of these days, to the moon”. Or maybe some macho form of I love my wife but instead of verbally sparing with her I would rather just settle it physically? ---
**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:** [June 11, 2024, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/15 "2024-06-11T15:52:04Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > > > > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > > > > > Just Redneck English. I understood it. > > > > I was unfamiliar with the phrase “square up,” at least in that context. I thought it meant to make things even, either literally (as in aligning the corners of a stack of paper) or figuratively (as in paying a debt). - > > The phrase is “square off” in terms of preparing to fight a person. Engrish as pointed out by @Thudlow_Boink . [Square up means the same thing in Slanglish.](https://www.dictionary.com/e/slang/square-up/) ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/16 "2024-06-11T16:03:14Z")
“Square off” has the connotation of two people facing one another, both preparing to fight. “Square up” has the connotation of one person assuming a fight-ready posture regardless of what the other person is doing. That’s the way I’ve heard it, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/17 "2024-06-11T16:06:45Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > What’s hard to get? “I love my wife, but sometimes I want to fight her.” Closer to “I love my wife, but sometimes I want to punch her.” Squaring up or squaring off against someone means physically fighting, not verbally. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/18 "2024-06-11T16:11:03Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > But why would you? Perhaps it explains why they don’t get along. I don’t think my wife would appreciate such a shirt (and I don’t know why she would buy it for me. She buys all my t-shirts). I think this is a “to each their own” situation. ---
**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:** [June 11, 2024, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/19 "2024-06-11T16:25:59Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Squaring up or squaring off against someone means physically fighting, not verbally. Actually it mean getting ready for a physical fight, but if actual fighting starts it’s past the square up/off phase. I think it’s playing the line between a figurative meaning and a literal one. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2024, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737/20 "2024-06-11T16:35:05Z")
To me, “square up” brings thoughts of settling a debt or paying one’s fair share. Still doesn’t make sense in the context of the sentence, though. I guess we really can say “forget about it; it’s Chinatown”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-decipher-this-saying-on-a-t-shirt/1002737.md?page=2)