# What Does Threadspotting Mean?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [August 26, 2003, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682 "2003-08-26T04:04:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682/1 "2003-08-26T04:04:31Z")

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I first saw it on the Straightdope [home page](http://www.straightdope.com), about 5 lines down from the top. And I basically haven’t found the term any place else. I can’t find it in my regular or slang dictionaries. A [Google](http://www.google.com) search brings up very little. I am posting my question in GQ because I assume it is a term used in other places than just on these boards. So,

What does “Threadspotting” mean?

🙂

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**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682/2 "2003-08-26T04:07:57Z")

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It means, “Oooh! There’s one!”

More specifically, it means, “Ooh, there’s a GOOD thread! All must read it!”

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**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682/3 "2003-08-26T04:14:02Z")

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It’s a pun on “Trainspotting”, the well-known anorak activity, not to mention book and film.

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**Author:** ![John\_Kentzel-Griffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ccd318/32.png) [@John\_Kentzel-Griffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Kentzel-Griffin)\
**Post date:** [August 26, 2003, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682/4 "2003-08-26T07:31:50Z")

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Since this is About This Message Board. . .

Off to ATMB.

**DrMatrix** - GQ Moderator

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-threadspotting-mean/197682/5 "2003-08-27T17:03:47Z")

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It means that the Powers that Be liked a thread on the message board enough to bring it to everyone’s attention on the front page. So far as I know, it’s unique to this board.

On Googling, I still think that it originated here, but it looks like it might have been adopted by other boards as well.