What it means
To mansplain is to explain something to someone, classically a man to a woman, in a condescending know-it-all way, usually about something she already understands better than he does. It's the unasked-for lecture delivered with total confidence and zero awareness. The whole point is the smug certainty paired with being wrong or redundant.
Usage examples
"I'm a mechanic and he still tried to mansplain how my own engine works."
"Please don't mansplain the plot of the film I literally just recommended to you."
"He tried to mansplain my own job to me, mate, and got half the facts wrong."
"Love when a guy mansplains feminism to a room full of women like he's dropped from the wisdom ceiling."
Where it comes from
A blend of man and explain, with the modern use really taking off after Rebecca Solnit’s 2008 essay Men Explain Things to Me helped pin the whole vibe down. The exact word spread fast online because it named that smug little TED Talk nobody asked for.
