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Etymology Journal ยท G

Got two left feet

Meaning

A cheeky way of saying someone is terribly clumsy or cannot dance to save their life. It suggests they lack the coordination to move gracefully.

Playful, teasing

Used in a sentence

  • I should probably sit this dance out since I have two left feet.
  • Watching him try to navigate the dance floor is painful because he has two left feet.
  • She loves music but admits she has two left feet when it comes to ballroom dancing.

The backstory

This is a classic idiomatic expression that has been around since at least the early 1900s. It relies on the literal impossibility of having two identical feet as a metaphor for physical ineptitude.

Heard in

Nationwide

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