what the what
- idiom
- Informal
:
¿qué demonios?
- When I saw the surprise party, I thought, what the what?!
Immediately you would be like, what the what?
- Immediately you would be like, what the what?
- Next thing that I hear is I'm like, what the what was that?
- And by the time it sat in like, motherfucker, what the what did you just call?
- You can't read it with a straight face being like what the what?
- I opened this up the other day and was like what the what can you see this?
Examples
-
Next thing that I hear is I'm like, what the what was that?
-
And you think, what the what the fuck is going on here?
-
I opened this up the other day and was like what the what can you see this?
-
And by the time it sat in like, motherfucker, what the what did you just call?
-
And by the time it sat in like, motherfucker, what the what did you just call?
-
Oh my God, Chef Trevor, what's the what did you do today and why did you do that?
-
She turned around and said, what the what is happening right now?
-
After hearing his bizarre explanation, I just blurted out, what the what?
Synonyms
347
8.9
An angry or surprised question showing you do not believe something
90
8.9
A short cry to show surprise, confusion, disbelief, or casual acceptance
68
9.8
A short phrase showing surprise and not believing what someone said
26
9.9
A strong phrase people say when they are very surprised or shocked
14
8.8
A short cry people use to show surprise or amazement
13
7.4
Shows surprise or mild doubt about what someone just said
12
7.1
A phrase showing surprise that something unexpected happened or was chosen
8
2.6
Words people say when they are surprised to see something
5
7.5
A short phrase people say to show surprise or shock
4
9.9
A short informal word people say when they feel surprise, shock, or annoyance
3
8.4
A short sound people make when they suddenly understand something
3
9.6
To say when you are very surprised or shocked
1
8.1
Words people say to show strong surprise or shock
1
9.9
A strong shout that shows surprise or confusion
A short informal way people use to show surprise, confusion, or disbelief
An informal phrase people say to show surprise or disbelief
A short phrase people use to show surprise or disbelief without a bad word
To show surprise or doubt
A short phrase people say when they feel surprised or do not believe something
A strong spoken reaction showing surprise and disbelief
A way to say you are surprised or do not believe something
You say this when you are very surprised and do not believe something
Said to show surprise or doubt
A short phrase people say to show surprise at something amazing
A word you say to show surprise or strong feeling
How Strong
- Offensive
- NSFW
347
8.9
- Informal
90
8.9
- Informal
- Informal
Surface Forms
Morphology
While the word 'what' already signals exclamation and surprise, the playful fixed pattern 'what the what' is an informal, idiomatic intensifier whose full pragmatic meaning (surprise/disbelief/confusion) is not directly predictable from the literal meanings of 'what' and 'the'. The repetition and truncation function as a euphemistic/colloquial replacement for stronger forms, so learners need exposure to this usage rather than pure compositional reasoning.
Etymology
What the what is a modern, playful way to show strong 'surprise' or 'confusion'. One popular idea is that it comes from people starting to say 'what the...' like 'what the hell' and then stopping and repeating what to show they are shocked or unsure, so the double what feels like an echo. So, the phrase is used when someone is very surprised or cannot believe something.