Things All Boyfriends Say Vs What They Actually Mean

1. You look great in anything

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When we hear the words 'you look great in anything' we should be flattered because they're telling us they think we're beautiful no matter what. When a guy says this to his girlfriend what he means is 'I don't know or care which dress you pick because the shades of blue and the styles look identical to me, just hurry up and pick one because to me you always look good'.

2. I'm just going out with the boys

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Ah, the 'I'm just going out with the boys' sentence. It's either a blessing - we get some time alone, or it's a curse, who knows what happens on boys' night! But when they tell you this they're really preparing you by saying 'It's boys' night, I'm going to be fully focused on my boys and having a good night, I might forget to text you and I probably will have too many drinks, and get home late'.

3. I love you

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Some guys struggle with expressing themselves, so when they say 'I love you' what it really means is 'I actually adore you and you mean so much to me, and me saying I love you is a huge deal'. So when your boyfriend says this to you just know that they mean it, they truly do love you and they mean more to you than they will probably manage to express to you!

4. You look nice

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'You look nice'...NICE, you could have picked a whole dictionary of words to describe me such as beautiful or gorgeous and you chose to tell me 'nice' which sounds barely more than 'fine'. This is what a girl thinks when she hears her boyfriend say these words. But when your boyfriend says this, he actually does mean 'Wow you look stunning but I can't think of the right words right now.

5. I'm not jealous

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Jealousy is going to occur at some point or another in a relationship. And when your boyfriend says 'I'm not jealous, he actually means 'I am jealous right now but I don't want to come across as possessive because I do trust you but I'd like some reassurance'. So when your boyfriend says this he's trying to put on a front for you so that he doesn't seem to distrust you.

6. I'm sorry If I upset you

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Sometimes guys just have less tact and emotional awareness than women. So they can sometimes upset us without even knowing it or meaning to. And when your boyfriend says 'I'm sorry if I upset you', this translates to 'I know I have upset you but I'm really not sure what I did wrong, could you forgive me so that we can move past it please'.

7. I won't be home late

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In boyfriend terms 'I won't be home late' means 'I know that I will be home late, way later than you want me to be and so I'm going to tell you a white lie and deal with the consequences later, purely to save a disagreement right now'. So when you hear these famous last words, don't take it for the truth as you have probably learned from experience.

8. I'm fine

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Men often struggle to open up about their emotions. They like to appear strong and find it hard to be vulnerable. So when they say 'I'm fine', it means 'I'm not fine at all but I don't know how to express it properly and I don't want to get upset in front of you'. So when you hear these words encourage him to feel safe to be able to open up when he's ready!

9. I'll do the dishes later

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The famous last words of a boyfriend are 'I'll do the dishes later'. Perhaps it's a worldwide phenomenon where most boyfriends seem to have a great aversion to washing the dishes, or household chores in general. And when you hear them say this to you just know that it means he's either never actually gotten around to doing it or they will be sat there hours or even days 'soaking'.

10. You don't need makeup

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As a girlfriend hearing that 'you don't need makeup' can create a few emotions. On the one hand, we're flattered because we know what they really mean is 'don't feel the need to put makeup on because I like your natural beauty the best, and I want you to know you're always beautiful'. On the other hand, it can be irritating because some people just love makeup!

11. Yes, your cooking tastes good

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When it comes to a boyfriend rating your food, their actions will be a much more accurate reflection of what they truly think. You may have made a dish that didn't exactly show your culinary skills off to the best of your abilities. So if he says an underwhelming 'your cooking tastes good' this means 'it tasted pretty awful but I'm trying to spare your feelings'.

12. I just didn't want you to worry

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Sometimes information crops up that we wished we would have known sooner and it's usually followed by a statement like 'I just didn't want you to worry' which really means I couldn't be bothered telling you because I wasn't sure how you'd take it and couldn't be bothered to disagree with you. It's not coming from a bad place or a place of maliciousness it was more inspired by laziness!

13. I'm not good with emotions

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Sometimes as a girlfriend, you want your boyfriend to open up to you and tell you how you feel about them. Or, we want to open up and be vulnerable with them and get proper answers back. So when they say 'I'm not good with emotions' they are really telling you that they struggle to communicate about emotions and feelings, not because they don't care but because they just struggle to express themselves.

14. I don't mind spending time with your family

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The in-laws...you and your boyfriend come as a package with your family. And sometimes in-laws can be a lot to deal with. You might want to spend a lot of time with you and your boyfriend might say things like 'I don't mind spending time with your family' which really means 'I'd like a little bit of space but I don't want to offend you or your family because I respect you all'.

15. Is he just a friend?

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Guy friends and girlfriends are an age-old problem in relationships. It's a strange relationship to navigate. Part of you naturally feels jealous and sees them as a possible threat. But you also know that it's absolutely fine for them to have friends of the opposite sex. When they ask 'Is he just a friend' he means 'I'm feeling a little jealous and need reassurance'.

16. I'm not in the mood right now

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People have different communication styles and sometimes when you have crossed words with your partner you might want to sit and hash it out, and they may want some time. So when they tell you 'I'm not in the mood' they are trying to tell you 'I need some space while I cool off and I don't want to have the same discussion again right now' so it's probably a good idea to leave them to it for some alone time!

17. I don't remember what I said

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Guys will use the excuse 'I don't know what I said' probably fairly often in a  relationship. And when your boyfriend is telling you this he really means 'I know exactly what I said, but I'm not admitting that now because it annoyed you so I'm going to pretend I have no idea what you're talking about'. Really, we'd just prefer it if they apologized and admitted it.

18. I didn't mention it because I knew you'd react like this

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Now this is something e never want to hear as a girlfriend 'I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react like this'. All this means is 'I've done something or know something that's seriously going to annoy you and I'm going to pretend I didn't tell you because of your reactions rather than the fact I couldn't face it!'. Again, truth is always the best policy in this case!

19. I'm not mad

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'I'm not mad at you' in boyfriend language means 'I am quite mad right now but I will forgive you and get over it soon and don't want to be mean about it'. In this case, it's good to accept the fact that he's trying to be nice about whatever situation has happened and let him have his time to mull it over and cool off before expecting him to get over it.

20. I'm not lost, I know where we're going

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Is it every boyfriend ever that thinks they have the homing skill of a pigeon...but really doesn't. In fact, it's their false confidence in their navigation skills that end up getting us lost! So when your boyfriend tells you 'I'm not lost' they mean 'I'm not sure where I am right now but I will make sure I find the way back because I'm supposed to be good at navigation'. But they have no idea...so be warned!

21. My phone died

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How many times have we heard 'my phone died' as a girlfriend when we are asking why they didn't get in contact with us for hours on end or even the entire night? We know their phone probably didn't die and the true meaning is more like 'oh no, I'm in trouble, what's the best reason I can come up with...I know, I'll tell her my phone died that's a good enough excuse'!

22. I'm not a mummy's boy

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Sons just have a different kind of relationship with their mother which makes their mother attached to them and feel super protective over them. And guys love having someone looking after them, so of course, they let themselves be mothered. If you tell them they're a mummy's boy however they will respond to it by saying I'm not to which we know it really means 'of course I am, but I'm not going to admit to it!'

23. You don't need to buy me a present

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It's lovely when our boyfriend tells us 'you don't need to buy us a present' because what it means is really 'I don't want you spending your money on me when I have you which is everything I want'. The meaning is actually super sweet, even though we all know that if we do get them a thoughtful present they'll be super happy and touched by it and will prize it forever!

24. I wasn't checking them out!

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Guys are super obvious, they just don't have the ability to act subtly like a woman does. So if we see them checking a woman out we know to trust our instincts. They may say 'I wasn't checking them out' but what they really mean is 'oh no, they caught me checking her out, quickly deny it!', even though your girlfriend knows exactly what you were doing!

25. She's just a friend

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Oh no, it's come back to the controversial girlfriends of your boyfriend. This is a hard one. You want to like them but something inside you can't help but be a little bit wary and jealous. And when he says 'she's just a friend', this usually actually means 'we did have something in the past, but I can't tell you that because it means nothing and you won't believe me'.

26. You look fine

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As girlfriends, we have times and days where we feel a little bit insecure or down on ourselves and we question how we look. When your boyfriend says 'you look fine' this is exactly what we don't want to hear. But actually, they mean 'you look good, you always do, stop questioning yourself and putting yourself down'. So it's actually a lot better than it sounds.

27. I'm not complaining, I'm just telling you

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Boyfriends think that girlfriends nag, and girlfriends think that their boyfriend's nag. So when your boyfriend tells you 'I'm not complaining, I'm just telling you', they really mean 'I am complaining but I'm trying to make it sound better and like I'm not being unreasonable. But we all know complaints when we hear one even if they do try and hide it.

28. Not another chick-flick...

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Your boyfriend probably demands to watch action movies all of the time which most of us girlfriends hate. So when we ask to put on the latest chick flick our boyfriend automatically responds 'not another', yet what you should know is that it actually means 'I'll pretend I don't want to watch one yet I know I'll be soon just as into the movie as she is'.

29. I won't forget

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Ah, why do all boyfriends tell us 'I don't forget' when we KNOW that they will forget almost 5 seconds later? What they should say is what they really mean which is 'I will forget but for now I can't be bothered to think about it and I'll try and remember it later'...but they won't bother writing it down or actually making any attempt to try and remember it.

30. I don't mind, you choose

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It's date night or we're picking takeout and your boyfriend tells you 'I don't mind you choose'. Now what they actually mean truly is 'I really don't mind and want you to be happy'. You may believe this because you may be comparing it to your 'I don't mind' which really means 'I know exactly what I don't want and will wait for your suggestions to see what I do want'.