45 Examples Of Mansplaining That Make Us Roll Our Eyes
By Jhoana C
Mansplaining is a word that has become very common lately, and plenty of women have had to deal with it while trying their very best not to lose their composure. Mansplaining is defined by the Oxford Languages as, “the explanation of something by a man, typically to a woman, in a manner regarded as condescending or patronizing.” Not only are men overconfident when they mansplain things, they very often tend to be incorrect, too. Ladies, you can let those arching eyebrows down. We believe you, and we know just how challenging life is without mansplaining thrown in the mix. Women everywhere weren’t surprised when a ton of women shared the mansplaining incidents they have experienced in their lives. Let’s collectively roll our eyes as we read them.
#1 We know how lawnmowers work
For some reason, some people have this belief that women don’t know how to operate tools and equipment in the home. We hate to spoil it for them, but we do read the manuals, and we don’t just randomly press buttons in the hopes of getting things to work.
This woman had a hard time getting her lawnmower to start and her neighbor went over to explain to her how it works, even though it wasn’t her first time using it. Quick question for him: what does the wet grass have to do with the lawnmower when it was on the asphalt?
#2 She knows her bees alright
Not all women just wear random stuff. Sometimes, we wear something because it has a connection to us; it could be our hobby or our job. Such was the case with this lady who’s a beekeeper. She lets everyone know her love for the creatures by wearing stuff with bees on them.
We would be just as frustrated if men came over to explain bees to us when that’s our job. Sometimes, men really like to tell us things, even if we don’t need them to, and even if we know more than them.
#3 You think you know better than me
Men. You can’t live with them; you can’t live without them. Even though they aren’t always asked to, men sometimes give their two cents… even when it’s not as helpful as they think it will be, or want it to be.
Why this lady had to be told the difference between lab glassware and regular glassware when she works in a lab is beyond us. She does lab work, so we’re pretty sure she knows the difference. What makes it worse is the guy explaining the difference to her doesn’t even work in a lab.
#4 Serves him right
Don’t you just hate it when somebody thinks they do a better job than you? Even though you have been working in a place longer than them, and have done your job without any complaints from the customers or the management whatsoever?
Well, the nerve of this newbie would make us angry too, just like this lady. Her reaction is to be applauded. Who likes being told by someone else how to do their job? We surely won’t, especially if we have more experience.
#5 Tale as old as time
Women and cars, as well as things that involve cars. For some reason, there is the notion that women are bad drivers and bad with things that involve cars. Well, some women may be bad drivers, but that doesn’t apply to all women.
We get super annoyed when somebody does not believe us. We know when things work, and we know when they don’t. This lady got sweet justice in the end when she was able to prove that the pump was indeed broken.
#6 Go, grandma!
Many women know their way around the kitchen, and we say many because some don’t like to cook. Period. Sometimes, women do the cooking, especially the stay-at-home moms who chose to raise their kids while their husbands go to work.
We can just imagine ourselves getting as angry as this grandma if our husbands told us what crockery to use. She has literally spent most of her life laboring in the kitchen and preparing meals for the family. The audacity!
#7 Wow!
Wow, just because you have opinions doesn’t mean you know everything. How can you know more about mental and physical health than someone who has gone through it, and especially someone who has spent years in school studying it while going through it?
We sure do hope this lady gave that man a lesson he will never forget, and we are all hoping she is now in a better place. Sometimes men just make us roll our eyes, because we just don’t get why they try to say anything to start with.
#8 Don’t mess with the ganache
Chocolates. Women just can’t get enough of them, or at least, that’s the pervading belief. Moody? Get some chocolates. That time of the month? Get some chocolates. So, it’s a given that women know their chocolates, especially those who bake a lot.
Yes, some words are difficult to pronounce, but people who use chocolate a lot for baking, or who own a chocolate store undoubtedly know how to pronounce the word ganache. So, don’t correct them, or else you will end up embarrassed.
#9 I know where I live
It goes without saying that people know where they live, unless it’s their first week or so of living in a new location. Imagine this woman’s frustration when she was driving home with her husband in the car, and he says this…
And her husband thought it would be a good thing to tell her where they live. Wow! This one makes us think her husband was just tired or something. Of course, she’d drive home and not to the neighbor’s home! Seriously, man.
#10 Books are her business
Pretending to have knowledge is dangerous, and this situation demonstrates that very well. You shouldn’t talk about books and the book industry when you don’t have much knowledge about it. It’s best to just shut up and not say anything at all.
We can only imagine the look on this successful woman’s face the moment she was mansplained about the publishing industry. We have to admire her patience. If it were us, we would have already blurted out that he should stop.
#11 Better than the native speaker
When talking about the Spanish language, the best people to consult would be the Spaniards. If you have questions about the French language, the best people to ask would be the French. It wouldn’t make sense to consult someone who is not a native speaker.
However, this woman’s boyfriend, who doesn’t speak her native language and knows nil about it, thought that he knew better. The fact that he even had the gall to tell her that she is mistaken is just disappointing, if you ask us.
#12 Handling musical instruments
Just to put it out there, musical instruments are not a monopoly of men. There are so, so many talented women musicians all over the world such as Joni Mitchell, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Mitsuko Uchida, and Yuja Wang. That doesn’t even scratch the surface.
AS has been shown since the dawn of music, women know their way around musical instruments. If you were a guitarist and a good one at that, you’d surely feel insulted if someone quickly assumed that you didn’t know how to tune, much less play, the guitar.
#13 Ok, maybe this is a little confusing
We’ll give this guy a break since Manet and Monet can be confusing, and he may have been an enthusiast himself. However, he should have asked first what our poster specialized in before he started explaining to her the very thing she teaches.
The two artists were contemporaries, but they definitely had their differences. Any art history major, or art history professor, for that matter, would know this very well. It’s probably the assumption that she didn’t know that made her so angry.
#14 Just when you’re already done doing the work
A very glaring difference between men and women is that women are not afraid to ask for directions and aren’t afraid to ask for help. If there is something we don’t know, we ask. We don’t pretend because we know it’s a futile attempt.
Well, this man assumed that the lady who was working with the laminator didn’t know what she was doing so he proceeded to “teach” her. He should have looked at the number of laminations she has already done before doing so.
#15 How hard can it be?
How difficult can it be to operate an elevator? You don’t need a master’s degree or a Ph.D. for it, right? We’re also pretty sure that it doesn’t need any technical expertise. All you do is push a button for the floor you want to get to.
The elevator does the rest of the work for you and if something happens all you need to do is press the emergency button for help. That some men think that women need someone to explain how an elevator works is more than baffling.
#16 I know my allergies
If you have allergies, you’d better research about it so you don’t end up putting yourself in situations that can cost you your life. People who have food allergies know exactly what they should and shouldn’t eat, and are careful when it comes to ordering.
People who work in the food business, whether male or female, should also educate themselves about food allergies so they don’t end up putting their customer’s lives at risk. Situations like this could easily be avoided with education and information.
#17 This is more like sexism
Why do people instantly think that men are the only ones interested in the military, the FBI, or the police force? To be fair to men out there, these were male-dominated fields… a while ago. It’s been quite a long time since women embarked on these careers.
Why is it so amazing to them to find out that women can also do what men do? This lady who was wearing a Marine Corps sweater was instantly thought of as maybe the girlfriend of the “real” Marine. In reality, her attending officer school in Quantico isn’t strange.
#18 Women have been wearing watches for hundreds of years
Watches have been in use for hundreds of years, and it is not something that’s only limited to men. Watches are pretty easy to use; you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to be able to look at it and tell the time correctly.
However, apparently there are those out there who think women of this day and age still can’t tell time correctly. How insulted would you be if a man, or anyone, said that he thinks you are unable to tell time?
#19 Limited knowledge is dangerous
We have the utmost respect for people who work in the medical field. They spent years studying and in internships. They also had to pass stringent tests before finally being able to practice in the medical field. This is why it irritates us to no end when someone claims to know more.
This woman works as a nurse, and so does her mother. So, it goes without saying that she was more than irritated when her stepfather, who hasn’t spent a year in medical school, thinks he knows more about medical issues than they do.
#20 Mansplaining and arrogance
Addiction is an ugly thing and some people are not comfortable talking about it. So, kudos to the people working to help those who are struggling to get better. That is some hard, but rewarding, work, and we admire anyone in that field.
This woman deserves praises for not only spending decades of her life helping others work towards better lives, and also not losing her cool when a guy tried to mansplain to her addiction and domestic violence, things she is very familiar with.
#21 Safety features are more than just seatbelts
If there’s one area which men think they know more about, it’s cars. They think that cars are the playground of men and although, indeed, some women don’t know much some, in fact some women are experts when it comes to cars.
Imagine this woman’s surprise when she asked the car salesman to show her the safety features of the car, the guy pointed to the seatbelt and mansplained to her, as well as demonstrated how to use it. If a seatbelt is the only safety feature a car has, we’re not buying it.
#22 Was he mansplaining or just nervous?
This emergency responder got the surprise of her life when a male patient in her ambulance tried to explain to her all the equipment she had and was using. Since we’re good people, we will give him the benefit of the doubt.
Perhaps he was just nervous about what’s going to happen to him, and to distance himself from his current situation, he thought it would be good to talk and talk, and talk a bit more. It could very well have been his coping mechanism.
#23 Washing machines are not things of wonder
What is it with electrical equipment and men? There is a fine line between being helpful, and being condescending and insulting. We do hope this was a one-off for this couple, and he realized how capable and amazing his wife is.
Women have pretty much been in charge of laundry since time immemorial, so we would naturally think that men would have the impression that we know how to wash clothes, whether manually, or with the use of those handy washing machines.
#24 Hardware stores and men
Hardware stores, contrary to popular belief, are not the domain of men. Women have as much right to go in there and purchase stuff without being looked down upon by any other customers. Okay, perhaps we are getting a bit dramatic.
However, if you’re a woman who’s gone into a hardware store, we guarantee that you’ve had the feeling that men look at you as if you don’t know what you’re doing. Be confident, ladies. We know you know what you’re doing. And if you don’t, we’re sure you’ll ask.
#25 Men and their need to explain things
No matter what women do, mansplaining is here to stay, and it’s something we have had to deal with all our lives. We want to commend the people who don’t lose their patience dealing with family members who mansplain to them day in and day out.
This woman’s sister has a Master’s in Social Work, and we’d also like to assume that she works in the field of social work. However, this doesn’t deter her father from explaining to her daughter just how social services work.
#26 Did he just start using email?
Some people only learned things recently, and they feel the need to educate other people about it too, but sometimes it just comes out as insulting. We don’t know whether this example falls in the former or the latter category.
We naturally think that people who work in the office know how to type and write an email or two. After all, it’s part and parcel of office work. Highlighting text is very easy to do, and we don’t need anyone to explain it to us.
#27 Do men have to explain things all the time?
People who work in government contracting know that they have a private company that produces services and goods for various public government agencies. For someone who has worked years in such a field, you’d think that they don’t need further explanation about what they do.
However, this guy thinks that it is his duty to the world to mansplain what government contracting is to someone who earns a living doing it. Sometimes it would do you better to be quiet and listen to others, especially when it is their field.
#28 Experience versus documentaries
Just because you watched a documentary or two about a thing on television or the internet doesn’t necessarily make you an expert on it. This is something that everyone, male and female alike, should remember. It could save you some embarrassment.
Acting as an expert on something without anything to back it up can be very annoying for people who are the real subject-matter experts. Let’s spare everyone the lecture, especially if they didn’t ask for information in the first place.
#29 Give us some space
Sorry, not sorry, but this classmate needs to give everyone, especially his lady classmates, their space. We have all had those classmates that are a pain in the you-know-where, and they think they know everything. They often end up working alone, right?
Even if nobody asks them to, they think it’s their job to explain things. A few of these individuals sometimes just want to show off and want to give off intelligent vibes. If you’re both at the graduate level, it’s safe to say that you both know something about space.
#30 Judgmental much?
Discrimination against women in the workplace is rampant, and this applies to the people they work with, and their customers. Women often aren’t trusted as much as men, especially in specific areas, such as engineering and architecture.
Although this lady wasn’t working in either industry, it still wasn’t a surprise that a customer preferred her male associate over her to do the fitting. Although, honestly, it makes us wonder if the man was uncomfortable being fitted by a woman, and she just assumed the worst.
#31 Men and sports
We have nothing against men who don’t know anything about sports. We love them just the way they are, but there are members of the male species that think they know everything about all kinds of sports. Some even think that most women don’t have a clue.
Pretend and act as they may, eventually they will be uncovered. But actually, we don’t think this was that bad. It sounds like he was someone who wanted to strike up a conversation and didn’t actually know enough about hockey to know it’s not basketball.
#32 Snowed in with mansplaining
Mansplaining knows no bounds. It’s not only limited to male colleagues in the office, or strangers. Brothers, fathers, and husbands even mansplain. At this point, it would fair to say that maybe not all men do it, but the ones that do make us roll our eyes.
We have to give credit to this wife – who spent most of her life living in a place with cold climates with lots of snow each year – because she didn’t lose it when her husband from Arizona decided it would be a good thing to let her know about snow accumulation.
#33 Yes, we know fish have gender too
If you met someone who majored in fisheries and wildlife, would you think that they know everything about fish? Of course, right? At the bare minimum, we would definitely assume they at least knew the difference between male and female fish.
The guy this poster was talking to apparently didn’t get the memo, or maybe he just assumed that even though she went to school, she doesn’t know this tidbit. Or maybe, he didn’t know her major and was really excited about this piece of knowledge.
#34 Farms are not just for men
There’s nothing wrong if a woman was to ask a man a question and he answered. However, if a man started explaining things to a woman while looking down at her, that’s a different thing. It doesn’t hurt to ask, but it also doesn’t hurt to explain things without being condescending.
However, a lot of men just don’t seem to know this. A case in point is the man who gave over his knowledge of farming to this woman, who grew up on a farm, studied about farms, and worked for a farm tech-related company.
#35 Yes, we have driven cars before
What is it with men and their cars? We just can’t wrap our heads around this. Yes, we know most drivers are male, and there are still places in the world that only just started allowing women to drive, but that doesn’t mean women are incapable of being good drivers.
We know that driving isn’t as easy as it looks, but women do at least know how to start a car. It’s been demonstrated so many times, and everyone has seen it in movies and TV shows, too. Yes, everyone knows the key goes in the ignition.
#36 Don’t need your advice
If you find the need to explain a game to someone, you should at least make sure that you are ahead and not getting your behind kicked! How are people going to believe you whatever you say when you’re on the losing end?
However, that didn’t deter this boyfriend. Even though the woman was badly beating him, he still had to act like he knew everything. Perhaps he’s just a bad loser. And perhaps he should spend some time honing his gaming skills first.
#37 We better start believing women
Why do men always assume that if everything went wrong in a home, a woman did it? Women don’t wreak havoc in their path, and they do know how to operate things in the home, like the light switch, for instance.
Believe it or not, men also make mistakes with the home appliances and the lights. Also, there is no need to explain the obvious, and everyone needs to get rid of their tendency to assume that if something goes wrong, it was a woman who did it.
#38 Extremely frustrating
This case is extremely frustrating, and we understand completely why the original poster was enraged and ended up slamming the door on her father’s face in response. However, this can go different ways. We’re assuming his theories weren’t very nice.
She had not taken the course yet, and her father might have some knowledge to pass on to her, but this all depends on the delivery of the message. We get the idea from her reaction that he wasn’t just providing a friendly opinion of what her class might be about.
#39 Men are childbirth experts?
Men mansplaining childbirth to women is pretty infuriating. First of all, they are not capable of birthing children so they don’t know the pain, the discomfort, and the sacrifice it takes for women to bring new lives into this world.
If we were in this woman’s shoes, we would certainly ask the man how many children he has birthed that would make him such an expert on childbirth. On the other hand, a transgendered man could know just as much about childbirth as a woman.
#40 Say this to a lady’s face
Everyone should stop explaining someone’s own job to them. If a lady is working as a police officer, then she knows police work. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been hired in the first place. This applies to all other occupations, too.
We are rolling our eyes at this guy trying to explain her degree to this female lawyer-in-training. We would have loved to know what her response was, but we’re also wondering what his point was in doing such a thing.
#41 Men and periods
They say that the time of the month makes women moodier and more sensitive. But this is no one else’s business. It is something most men could never understand, and imagine having it explained to you by someone who never will experience it.
First of all, we would ask any man who tried to mansplain periods and PMS to us with a question regarding how many times they have had to deal with periods. If the answer is zero, then we are not listening.
#42 Driving is more than just observing the speed
First of all, the more pressing issue here is that what this man is doing is potentially dangerous. What if he was talking to someone who had no knowledge about cars, and they believed him? The other lights are there for a reason.
The other lights are pretty darn important, and they should pay attention to more than just the speed. This is just a bad salesperson overall. He should know that not just men, but everyone needs to pay attention to everything on the dash.
#43 Leave the coaching to the coach
Some men have watched so many sporting matches online that they think this makes them experts. Somehow, this makes them think that they can jump in and create a play that can help the team win out of thin air.
Perhaps this happens in movies but not in real life. We get it; you want to help your team win, but it would be better to just leave the coaching to the coaches. You know the people who have the expertise and the experience, and the people who have been paid to do just that.
#44 Mansplaining with a little bit of geographical ignorance
For those of you who may not know this, Asia is the biggest continent on the planet. It covers the most land area (obviously), and there are more than 40 countries in it. Before you talk about Asia and other continents, it pays to look at a map or a globe.
This guy is geographically ignorant. Nope, India is not a continent. It is a country that is located in the continent of Asia. And just to get the message out there, in case anyone is confused, Asia is made up of many races, Indians included.
#45 Come back and tell us after you’ve given birth
Most husbands are supportive when it comes to childbirth. They are just as excited to see the little one as the mother, and they want to do everything possible to ensure that Momma to be is comfortable, safe, and healthy.
However, there is another group of men who have never birthed a child who think that they know more about childbirth and managing the pain that is a natural part of it. This guy’s wife was probably getting really nervous right about now.