- English translation
"Dad, how do I become a real bore?" "Simple: say everything twice."
- Literal wording
"Father, teach me obnoxiousness." He said: "Whatever you say, say it again."
- Meaning and lesson
The saying is staged as a short dialogue. A son asks his father how to become an insufferable bore, meaning tiresome, heavy company rather than base or vile, and the father deadpans that the whole art lies in repeating whatever one says. The joke makes repetition the mark of wearisome company.
As a comment on behavior, it holds that hearing the same talk again is among the most wearing things a listener can endure. It warns speakers that retelling stories or restating points drains goodwill, and it ridicules people who never notice they have said it all before.
- When it is used
Use it to tease someone who keeps retelling the same story, joke, or complaint, or to remind yourself not to belabor a point. The father's advice is ironic, not real instruction. It suits relaxed, familiar conversation, where the gentle mockery reads as humor rather than insult.
- Register
- Colloquial, humorous
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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