What it means
It means you can't be bothered, plain and simple. You've got zero appetite for the effort, the plan, or the whole little circus around it. It's blunt, casual, and a bit cheeky, so people use it for chores, invites, texts, or nonsense they're not willing to spend energy on. Say it to someone's face and it can sound pretty dismissive.
Usage examples
"You coming to Kev’s motivational fun run at 7am? Not arsed, mate. I’m staying in, ordering a curry, and watching the rain kick off outside."
"I was gonna go to the gym but honestly I'm not arsed today."
"They want us to do icebreakers on a Friday at half five. I'm not arsed, I'm going straight to the pub."
"Mum kept asking if I'd sort the garage this weekend, but I'm really not arsed with it."
"They've started another group chat about the office night out. Honestly, I'm not arsed."
Where it comes from
It comes from British arse, meaning backside. In can't be arsed, the image is that you can't even shift your arse to do the thing. Not arsed is the shortened version, common in British and Irish casual speech, and it keeps that same dead-flat vibe of zero effort and even less interest.
Other ways to say it
Editors of this term
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