The Archive

Etymology Journal · G

Get a life

Meaning

A rude suggestion that the person is spending too much time on trivial things or meddling in someone else's business. It suggests they have nothing better to do.

Sassy, dismissive

Used in a sentence

  • Why are you watching my every move? Get a life.
  • He spends all his time complaining about strangers online, he needs to get a life.
  • Get a life and find a hobby that does not involve bothering me.

The backstory

Entered popular culture in the 1980s as a way to mock people obsessed with fandoms or menial hobbies. It is a quintessential insult for the bored and busy-bodied.

Heard in

Nationwide

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