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Like how we all face the door in an elevator or feel the need to say 'ope' when we almost bump into someone. What’s a silent rule of society that you find hilarious or totally unnecessary?

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[-] hitmyspot@aussie.zone 15 points 3 days ago

I say gesundheit as I'm not religious and don't like to propagate religious sentiment, but I like the idea, too. I'm not German.

[-] backalleycoyote@lemmy.today 15 points 2 days ago

I say “pineapple”, because unlike God, pineapples are real. Also it confuses people.

[-] panda_abyss@lemmy.ca 11 points 2 days ago

Pineapples want to digest me though

[-] backalleycoyote@lemmy.today 9 points 2 days ago

On the scale of malignancy, I’d say the pineapple’s desire to digest us is pretty tame compared to the attitude of most gods. At least it’s tasty while it does so.

[-] popekingjoe@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

And honestly? Pineapples are pretty delicious.

[-] Allero@lemmy.today 3 points 2 days ago

In Russian, it is "be healthy!" (будь здоров!), much to the same tune

[-] FosterMolasses@leminal.space 2 points 2 days ago

My favorite thing about Russian is that most things translated to English sound so rude out of context, haha

Most of the speech sounds like aggressive dictation "Come over", "Sit down", which is such a stark contrast to the English manner of speech: "Do you think it might be possible if it doesn't terribly trouble you to pass the salt?"

I also learned a little while ago that apparently this manner of speech is also seen as somewhat offensive in parts of Scandinavia because it's seen as passive aggressive lol

[-] Allero@lemmy.today 1 points 2 days ago

It depends regionally and contextually, quite some Russians are quite hyper-polite in their own right, which in turn is a laughing matter for the others.

I mean, if you would be so kind to accept another possibility, that is. I don't insist!

[-] Lighttrails@sh.itjust.works 5 points 2 days ago

Salud is good too

[-] hcf@sh.itjust.works 3 points 2 days ago

I say gelassenheit as I'm not superstitious and don't like to propagate superstitious sentiment. I'm also not German.

[-] Lumidaub@feddit.org 2 points 2 days ago

Say Schönheit instead and be as witty as a real German.

[-] Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Funnily enough, it is not universally agreed on in German to say "Gesundheit".
Many don't do it any more (me included), because it is a comment on an uncontrolled body function and thus pretty intrusive.

Exception to this may be people who are really close to you.

[-] kindnesskills@literature.cafe 2 points 2 days ago

Regardless of which phrase is being said, I think it's nice that we have a little rituals here and there.

A sneeze is often loud, sudden, startling and disruptive, so having a standard word or short phrase can ease us back into normal conversation mode without derailing the preceeding conversation (like actually asking if someone is okay could take us too far from the original topic). A quiet sneeze recuires no easing out of.

If I do a loud sneeze and no one says any variant of gesuntheit, I feel compelled to mildly apologise (pardon/excuse me) before carrying on, so one party does the little ritual to bridge between violent sound and normal speaking either way. Can be nice to "bless" the sneezer so they dont have to apologise for disrupting.

[-] SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 1 points 3 days ago

You could bless directly, like a self-signed certificate.

this post was submitted on 18 Apr 2026
123 points (100.0% liked)

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