Street voices
Hugues
·
United States
"Out of left field, when something appears very suddenly and jarringly. So the other night, I was on a date with this chick, and you know, we're talking, laughing, things are going great, and then she just hits me with... So have you ever made out with your sister? What? Like, what kind of question is that? Totally out of left field."
What it means
Means something gets dropped into the convo or situation so randomly that everyone does a mental double take. It can be a question, a comment, a reveal, whatever, but it feels like it came from nowhere and knocked the whole vibe sideways for a second. You use it when something is unexpected in a slightly jarring, what the hell was that, kind of way.
Usage examples
"We were just chatting about movies, then Jamie asked if I had ever faked my own death. That came straight out of left field, dude."
"We were planning a quiet dinner when she announced she was moving to Japan in a week, completely out of left field, and we just blinked at her."
"We were talking rent and groceries, then Marcus goes, so are any of you emotionally ready to raise alpacas? Proper out of left field, mate."
"The meeting was dead boring till my boss casually said he might quit and move onto a boat. Completely out of left field."
"We were talking about splitting the Uber, then Nate goes, so if I vanish, clear my search history. Bit out of left field, not gonna lie."
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Where it comes from
It comes from baseball. Left field was the unexpected angle, the throw you weren't really clocking till it was already flying in. That surprise-jolt drifted into everyday English, so now if somebody says something weirdly random or drops a wild reveal, people call it out of left field.
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