17 people reveal the basic fact they learned embarrassingly late in life.
While there's no such thing as a 'dumb question,' and you should never shame anyone for attempting to learn more, sometimes there's nothing to do but laugh when your friend asks you at age 35 if the sun has aliens...
So, when a Reddit user asked, 'What fact did you learn at an embarrassingly late age?' people were ready to share the basic facts and common knowledge about the world that they discovered hilariously late in life. Hate to ruin senior prom, everyone, but Santa isn't real, ok?
1.
I didn't realize that tongs were called tongs until an eighth grade science experiment. When the teacher asked us to pick up the tongs, I was super confused. Then I looked around and realized, horrified, that OF COURSE they weren't called 'fanny grabbers' anywhere outside of my family. Thank God he used their real name before I had a chance to ask someone to pass me the fanny grabbers... - YesAndAndAnd
2.
I somehow still believed in the tooth fairy long after knowing that parents made up santa claus. I found out whilst trying to sound grown up in a conversation with my older cousins, Them: 'yeah, it's annoying how we have to keep the secret for our little brothers' Me: 'yeah soooo annoying' Them: 'same with the tooth fairy' Me: crushed - Kailiyan
3.
That my mom didn't actually take my dog to go live on a farm. - QUESO0523
4.
That meat is made of muscle. I realized in med school. - i_like_girl
5.
I used to think that when listening to a CD the singer had to physically sing it from wherever they were in the world in order for you to listen. So when it was night time I wouldn't listen to my Avril Lavigne CD because I didn't want her to lose sleep for me - craniumblood
6.
Not necessarily a fact but I didn't understand the 'What's black and white and read all over?' riddle until I was 17 and saw it written out on a storefront display. I thought it was 'black and white and red' and subsequently thought old newspapers just had black and white and red ink until that day - PlantyPlants
7.
Women have a urethra. I thought they just peed out of their vagina until I was 20. I would like to thank the internet for that since public education and neglectful parents didn't do sh*t. - Cgull1234
8.
That the saying was 'make ends meet' when you're going paycheck to paycheck. I always assumed it was 'make ends meat'. Like, you only had enough money to buy the worst pieces of the meat in order to get by - daitenshe
9.
I didn't know what a GPA was until I was a Junior. - xLYCANTHROPEx
10.
That a pony actually isn't a baby horse. Like, at all. - paperbackgarbage
11.
That it's prima donna, not Pre-Madonna.. I always thought to myself that it was weird because I didn't think Madonna was THAT famous - saarahpops
12.
I always thought that if a guy didn't hold his penis while he was peeing, that it would whip around like a fire hose. - RubyRed93
13.
Thought reindeer were mythical creatures, like unicorns, that helped Santa at Christmas. Didn't realize until I was 18. My mum took me to see real reindeer that Christmas, my mind was blown - trolltollwhatyousay
14.
I thought lingerie was a fancy word for laundry for way longer than I care to admit. Explains why my mates gave me a weird look when I told them I had to fold my lingerie - Jews_Are_meh
15.
That birds don't live in nests. Just for rearing their young. I learned that at the age of 72. And I have a PhD in biophysics. Not zoology. Never too late to learn. - alanmagid
16.
When I was cleaning my last apartment the day before moving out, I ran out of paper towels cleaning counter tops. I thought I couldn't continue without going to the store for more, until over the phone, my mother asked why I didn't just use a towel. Paper towels and towels can serve the same function.. I am 30. - FinalFacade
17.
I was convinced cheese grew on bushes till 12-13 years old. My brother is really proud of this. - digdat0