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Glite Dictionary
that's what she said

that's what she said

1 9.9
A joke phrase people say after someone says something that can sound sexual
  • idiom
  • NSFW
translation icon : eso dijo ella
  • Whenever someone makes an accidental double meaning, someone is sure to say that's what she said.

Examples

  • He laughed after I said 'it's so hard to handle' and immediately added that's what she said.

  • People often use that's what she said to turn normal statements into jokes.

  • That's hilarious! That's what she said!

  • I love it! That's what she said.

  • When he mentioned needing a bigger tool, I couldn't help but reply, 'That's what she said!'

  • Every time someone talks about working hard, I always joke, 'That's what she said!'

  • After he described how long he had to wait, I laughed and said, 'That's what she said!'

Synonyms

as the actress said to the bishop
vsthat's what she said
  • NSFW
9.9

A humorous phrase that points out a sexual double meaning in what was said

is a humorous phrase used to highlight sexual innuendo in another's words
that's what your mom said
vsthat's what she said
  • Offensive
9.9

A joke reply that mentions someone's mother to tease them about sex

is more general, simply highlighting sexual innuendo without personal targeting
nudge nudge wink wink
vsthat's what she said
  • NSFW
9.9

Hint at something in a joking way with a wink or small gesture

is a direct verbal joke that explicitly points out sexual innuendo

Surface Forms

that's what she said main

Morphology

that's + what + she + said

The literal combination of 'that is what she said' simply reports speech and does not by itself indicate a sexual innuendo; the humorous tag meaning (drawing attention to a double entendre) is a pragmatic/cultural joke rather than a compositional semantic result of the words. Recognizing and using this phrase requires exposure to English-speaking humour conventions and pragmatic inference, so a B1 learner who only knows the constituent words would unlikely derive the idiomatic meaning.

Etymology

That's what she said is a short joke people use to point out a possible sexual double meaning in something someone just said. One popular story says imagine the she in the line had literally said the same words during sex, so saying that's what she said points out the secret, funny 'sexual meaning'.