Man touching grass in a stock photo.

Touch Grass

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About

Touch Grass, or Touch Some Grass, is a popular online insult and alternative way of telling someone to "go outside," implying they're spending too much time online and it's affecting their wellbeing. The exact origin of the phrase is unknown, but it started spreading significantly in 2019, becoming increasingly popular on Twitter throughout 2021.

Origin

It's unknown when "touch grass" was first used as an alternative to "go outside," with examples on Twitter[2][3] dating back to at least 2015 (example shown below).


AMBERLYN @hotandpisces YOURE ALL HORNY ANIMALS STOP GO OUTSIDE TOUCH SOME GRASS IT WILL BE OKAY - Life Advice from Cara 3:39 PM - Feb 15, 2015 · Twitter for iPad Tylerr Jøseph @Arnazing_Phil #twitterdown well maybe it wouldn't be if you got off of this trend and go touch some grass (very unlikely if youre a couch potato like me) 9:56 AM - Jan 19, 2016 · Twitter Web Client

The phrase grew in popularity over the next five years, primarily on Twitter and 4chan,[5] seeing a significant rise in use starting in 2019. For example, on May 3rd, 2019, Twitter[1] user @flyhinata used "touch some grass" as an insult in a Twitter thread criticizing people who threaten others for shipping 2D characters, garnering over 1,400 likes and 700 retweets in two years (shown below).


leah + @flyhinata im sorry but if you're threatening REAL violence against people for shipping 2d characters i need you to reevaluate your f------ life. get it together. instead of threatening to k*ll people or bust peoples kneecaps or whatever tf, how about you just use the block and mute button? leah + @flyhinata · May 3, 2019 Replying to @flyhinata go outside. touch some grass. this dillusion that shipping pure things makes you a good person is honestly pathetic and shows how truly out of touch some fandom people can be. i'm so tired of it.

Spread

Over the course of 2020, variations of the phrase "touch grass" began to spread across social media, used in a number of popular posts. For example, on February 11th, 2020, Twitter[4] user @revolvyrn used the insult in a post criticizing a company for using a deceased artist's work after they said they could use it "in the future" before their death, therefore unable to consent to the official use of their artwork, garnering over 44,800 likes and 12,600 retweets in a year (shown below).


sonialovemail @revolvyrn ... if your "proof" an artist who has unfortunately passed away said "we can totally monetize their work" is a f------ "not right now" and then you do it anyway after they pass and can't tell you to f--- off now, you're deranged! seek help! touch some grass! log the f--- off! ginniart Thanks, but honestly I've only done royalty payments and it's a bit of a hassle tbh lol mel tin Peace Onn med Thank you eryting Oiat 26 likes I swear we are not like anyone you made a deal with before. it'll be easy with us my queen we really really appreciate your art Qing SHOURS AGO mekondnote Jan 01, 2019 LOTven ng Melon Let's put this on the back burner for later then lol happy new year Thanks sweetheart Happy New Year a Hope that 2019 a Magical year for youe

On November 28th, Twitter[9] user @radiantbutch posted, "yeah so the whole “touch grass” “go outside” “take a walk” brand of Twitter comebacks got old REALLY quickly. also they’re ableist. there I said it," garnering over 1,000 likes and 180 retweets in six months. She further describes her issue with the phrasing in the comments (shown below).


jules rylan * @radiantbutch yeah so the whole "touch grass" "go outside" "take a walk" brand of twitter comebacks got old REALLY quickly. also they're ableist. there i said it 12:12 PM - Nov 28, 2020 · Twitter for iPhone jules rylan * @radiantbutch - Nov 28, 2020 Replying to @radiantbutch ... the implication that someone is only upset about something bc they spend too much time online makes you sound like a f------ boomer and is super harmful to people who are isolated, or disabled, or f---, maybe stuck instead during a pandemic. it's okay to care about things online. t7 72 7 445 jules rylan * @radiantbutch - Nov 28, 2020 even if all of this s--- wasn't incredibly ableist, it's annoying as f---. ... me: hey this thing genuinely upsets me and i wanna talk about it a------: lol go touch some grass like f--- you

On December 24th, Urban Dictionary[13] user steered-gay:0 defined "touch some grass," garnering over 400 thumbs-ups in five months.

Throughout the first quarter of 2021, the phrase started popping up more frequently on other social media platforms, remaining the most popular on Twitter.

On March 18th, 2021, Redditor u/powfutality posted an image to /r/Cringetopia[6] showing all the 6 Digit Codes for the Ahegao Hoodie images titled "go outside touch some grass man😔✋" garnering over 1,800 upvotes in just under two months (shown below).


go outside touch some grass maneU 63% Satire / 25% Meta / 13% Cringe 173936 -p11. 106186 - p21 177810 - p10 89468 - p29 162677 - p14 144529 - p19 33260 - p30 139808 - p19 81892 - p17 86895 - p17 121916 - p20 73111 - p19 The madlad who figured it out

On April 6th, Twitter[14] user @HatianBhaddie posted a video with over 19 million views from TikToker[15] @michaeloftiktok showing how babies avoid grass instinctually, gaining over 300,000 likes and 67,000 retweets in a month. On April 7th, Instagram[16] page @wregon shared a screenshot of this tweet and the video captioned, "'TOUCH SOME GRASS' I don’t think I want to after seeing this" garnering over 400,000 views and 66,000 likes in a month (shown below).



On April 21st, YouTuber[7] Gianni Matragrano posted a voiced over meme in which he shouts, "No, that does it, go touch grass now!" garnering over 330,000 views in two weeks (shown below).



The phrase also gained significant popularity on TikTok, used in the same way and mostly in comments and captions to mock people who are "too online." For example, on April 28th, TikToker[12] @gabeyfort posted a skit with the caption, "POV: Weeb Touches Grass," garnering over 1.2 million views in five days (shown below).


https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/6955968508370930950

On April 29th, Twitter[17] user and Twitch streamer Neekolul, best known for her "Ok Boomer" dance video, posted a screenshot from her DMs of a man asking to buy her clothes, writing, "pls touch some grass," garnering over 28,000 likes and 540 retweets in four days (shown below).


neekolul @neekolul pls touch some grass 3:01 PM I will literally buy your wardrobe of clothes if you ever sell it, I wanna get a sniff so bad , just one sniff of that smell of a luxurious human being like yourself, I've never praised a god but you are the first goddess l've ever seen, please respond to me your majesty Accept message request from $ (v )?

Surprisingly, I Still Think X Is Bad

On April 29th, 2021, Twitter[8] user @Noelle_Boossy posted, "My gift to Twitter as 'touch grass' gets adopted by the worst people," and a number of image macros of a hand touching grass with text implying the phrase is used by racists, transphobes, homophobes and ableists, garnering over 22,700 likes and 4,900 retweets in four days (shown below).


Noelle No cops @Noelle_Boossy ... My gift to Twitter as "touch grass" gets adopted by the worst people surprisingly surprisingly Istill think racism is bad Tstill think homophobia is bad surprisingly surprisingly Istill think transphobia is bad 1 still think ableism is bad

The post resulted in a number of replies[10][11] and new variations of the meme making similar jokes about people touching grass, their opinions left unaltered (examples shown below).


surprisingly i still think you're weird for looking at sexualized drawings of children surprisingly i still think you're weird for being in your 20s and defending your right to date 16 year olds

Various Examples


Somebody on the internet: Go touch grass Me: Soogle grass Ho Lawn Grass FEJKA Artificial potted ikea com In stack "TOUCH GRASS" OK IF U INSIST Akutagawa , go out and touch some grass. I'm begging you. I'm concerned. What is this. spookie.pie T 1231 192 I must choose paper fit for Dazai-san's buttocks.
h @queerbigan2 - Apr 30 ... Replying to @Noelle_Boossy twitter: "touch grass" babies: - rexie/milo - @rexiplier be more like markiplier!!! touch some grass!! HEY GIRL TOUCH SOME GRASS WITH ME

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