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What's a better form of entertainment in this digital age than scrolling through some funny memes? Especially when you've had a really tough day or week. Sometimes, even your favorite show or movie seems to require too much brain power. So opting for a quick but effective fix in the form of some random memes is often your best bet.

Today, we're featuring a community that shares hilarious content daily. The Funny AF Spiritual Memes group has 2 million members, so you know you're in safe hands, Pandas. Scroll down and entertain yourself with some memes about this weird thing we call life. And read on for our exploration of how memes have become a language in their own right.

At this point, most of us are familiar with what the word 'meme' means. In 1976, Richard Dawkins called it "ideas that spread from brain to brain." In today's Internet culture, that's especially apt because memes tend to spread like wildfire on different social media platforms. The more accurate description for today would perhaps be that the ideas spread from device to device.

The first example of what memes look like is an image from the Judge Magazine issue in 1921. It's the original "Expectations vs. Reality" type of picture. Yet people don't consider it to technically be a meme. Why? Because it didn't have the virality aspect. For a picture, a video, or a quote to become a meme, people have to copy it and share it.

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#4

Gregory

Gregory Report

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Nat Rich
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I swear it should be banned. The number of times I've slammed on the brakes because I thought something was coming.

Aline
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NEVER SLAM ON THR BRAKES WITHOUT LOOKING BEHIND YOU! If you slam in the brakes because you hear a siren, you shouldn't be driving. Please tell me this is satire.

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Khavrinen
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I freaked out a little once when a new cassette ( It was a long time ago, OK? ) I was playing had a song that started with the sound of helicopters. I thought something was seriously wrong with my car. ( Billy Joel, "Goodnight Saigon" )

Unauthorized Kiwi
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I know! Hlls kitchen has many weird sound effects, and one is specifically a violin screech that sounds like a tornado siren. There actually was a tornado one time and the sirens went off and I thought it was the sound effect. Then I thought, "Well it is quite longer than usual, huh?"

Data1001
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Was very confused by this pic for a moment, as it looks like he's on a boat, so I immediately thought "siren song" (y'know, the myth about sirens that lured sailors to their deaths)... and was trying to figure out how you could pause a siren song.

Sue Denham
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes! And also thinking "Is that my indicators or the music?".

White Sauce Hot Sauce
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This isn't a problem for me, because I actually pay attention to my surroundings when driving, and not just the back of the car in front..

StrangeOne
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My ex used to love to speed down the highway to the beach and back. One time he had his usual gangsta rap on and we heard this siren fad in over the music. He literally thought he was getting pulled over but couldn't see the cop. Then the siren faded out weirdly and we found out it was in the song. We both had a laugh. Did he learn anything? Nope.

Lotekguy
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Similarly, hitting the pause button on what I'm watching to check on whether sirens or other noises are part of the program. Safer than while driving, but still a bit of a nuisance.

Alley Cat
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

At one of my band concerts, we played a song with a siren in it. Everyone jumped for a moment because they realized it was part of the song. It definitely fits the song's name (Stormchasing).

Probably Legal
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When people are talking in the background of the song… it would be fine unless it’s 3 am and your alone

Lindsey Madison
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is why my boys aren't allowed to bring any toy fire trucks in the car anymore. The amount of times I've pulled over to wait for an emergency vehicle that didn't exist... Numerous. The amount of time I sat waiting for said vehicle to pass me... More than I'm willing to admit.

MDNHK
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There used to be a morning radio spot in the 80’s called “Police Blotter” that would talk about stupid criminals. It started out with a siren. It got me every damn morning - I’d be looking around for a cop.

Gracie Mae
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

omg, i do this so much in the car! it freaks me out, but thankfully it's always been on the radio

Kenzie C.
Community Member
4 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

🤣🤣🤣🤣I always turn down the volume and/or bass on the bluetooth stereo in my car and quickly turn my head, just to make sure lol. I even turn my volume down just a bit when I'm stopped at a light in traffic, because I like having my music up loud and I hate disturbing others lol, even though I hear plenty of offensive music coming out of other vehicles sometimes 😅🤦‍♀️

SkippityBoppityBoo
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Omg yes, some people in cars in the city centre have played certain songs loudly that contain sirens and when you're used to just stopping, staying still when you hear a siren when walking or waiting to cross the road? It's annoying when its actually someone in a car with their music on loudly.

Lyone Fein
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If there's a siren, the appropriate action is to look in your rearview mirror. When you see an emergency vehicle approaching, signal and pull off to the side of the road. No brake slamming necessary.

marianne eliza
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Worse is the sound of ringing or chirps. Everyone checks, is that me or you?

C L
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The Top Gun soundtrack while speeding across US 50 in the wilds of Utah. Every single time it came up I fell for it again.

Riley Quinn
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I live on a very busy, loud street, and I watch a lot of action or sci-fi shows/movies with all sorts of sound effects. Many times I've had to pause the video to investigate if it's the show or if it's something going down outside.

Julia Mckinney
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Or being in the shower, feel shaking, think "damn it! The washing machine out of alignment again! Wait a sec, I'm not doing laundry, EARTHQUAKE!!!" Jump out of shower to find kids, huddle in a doorway and wonder if I have the nerve to run outside naked. (It was the Nisqualley, WA. quake, 2001, our house/area was fine- a painting and a bunch of books fell down, bookcases were tied to studs in the wall)

Guess Undheit
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Pause the sound in ~any~ video. Sometimes youtbutters have something going on in the background.

Jaya
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I did that a couple of times too, and then I realized how much of an idiot I am, because the American siren sounds completely different from the Dutch one, and it doesn't make sense for American police/ambulance/fire brigade to be driving around in the Netherlands. Lol. And there isn't a lot of Dutch music with sirens in it, I don't think I've heard any yet.

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#6

Jocelyn Kohler

Jocelyn Kohler Report

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Pollywog
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've actually done that a couple times. The looks on their faces made me giggle a little. 😄

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Nowadays, what we consider to be memes is so widely known that even a non-chronically online person would know them. There probably isn't a young person who wouldn't recognize Drake gesturing 'nuh-uh' from his "Hotline Bling" video or that screenshot from an anime with the butterfly with the caption "Is this [blank]?"

Yet, it is a sort of secret language. More niche memes allow individuals with similar interests to communicate things others might not know about. One person could be well-versed in philosophy memes but know absolutely nothing when they see a Formula 1 meme.


#7

Jason Hillard

Jason Hillard Report

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Rick
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Playgrounds I played on daily as a kid would be considered child abuse today.

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Linguist Rebecca Garcia claims that memes are not so much a language of their own but a graphic form of speech. "Just as language and writing is a form of communication, so are memes. Even though these images incorporate only short written messages, they’re usually understood by the receiver or audience."

#12

Watie Sagitarius

Watie Sagitarius Report

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Tiffany Marie
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mens beauty line is starting to expand more and more. Eventually it'll be as bad as wonens. Just give it some time.

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Memes don't represent the way we write. They're an expression of how we talk. The way we speak is more informal than how we express ourselves in writing. "We mirror our speech patterns in memes. Therefore, when we communicate with memes, we are communicating with a graphic form of speech," Garcia writes in her Public Linguist blog.

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#13

Jeremiah Johnson

Jeremiah Johnson Report

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waarimelone
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Got it. Develop the most attractive allergic reaction ever to makeup.

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#15

Crystal Alexis

bugposting Report

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Lauren Caswell
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You don't want to absorb too much serotonin. you need a field of it per se, to allow proper neuron communication. People with low serotonin are put on SSRI meds(Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor). This slows the re-absorption of serotonin, allowing the levels in the brain to rise and re-establishing effective neural firing (the lack of which can cause depression. I have inherited GAD anxiety myself, so SSRI meds don't work. I take SNRI [Selective Noradrenaline Reuptake Inhibitors] meds instead, as Noradrenaline is to anxiety as Serotonin is to depression).

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We tend to communicate through pictures on social media more than with words. We send GIFs, emojis, and, of course, memes. But with memes, it's not about the image itself. In 2015, researcher Walter Jose Castañeda concluded in his study that the meme image is what matters, not the image in the meme. "[Memes] obviate any relationship that their components may have with the image from which they originate," he wrote.

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When someone sends you a meme with a tearful cat, the conversation doesn't actually have anything to do with cats. The text and the context of the conversation seemingly have nothing in common with the cat picture. But when put together, they make up a complete composition and we get its meaning.

Memes also have a strange power of bringing people together. They are a reflection of Netlore (Internet folklore) and reflect many different facets of the human experience. What was once an easy and new way to joke around with friends online is turning into a community-building engine. It's not just about the many faces of Doge and Pepe anymore -- memes now can be way deeper than that.

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"We can see not just the new ways people do things or the new ways people express themselves in public but also some of the themes, some of the anxieties or desires people have. All of these complex issues are reflected in things like memes," Director of the Centre for Digital Culture at Kings College London Paolo Gerbaudo told the BBC.

#26

Laurice Rose

Laurice Rose Report

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Casey Smith
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was walking and found a snail on the sidewalk so I brought it with me to the park and then when I got home I worried it would be lost so I went back and got him and brought him to the area I found him and that was 1987 but I still think of that snail.

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Memes can help people feel less alone during hard times (this was especially evident during the pandemic), but they also can help marginalized communities. Sharing memes is a great way to build a collective identity. The founder of the Meme Studies Research Network, Idil Galip, said that this collective sense of identity even bleeds into real life.

#29

David Castillo

David Castillo Report

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Howl's sleeping castle
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My parents have accepted that my cat is an important family member and they let me show them her photos and videos, and they watch it happily. My mum sometimes even asks if my cat ate food or not.

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"Niche memes are not meant to go viral," Galip explained. "They're meant usually to create things like in-group belonging, something that kind of strengthens a sense of identity." It's similar to speaking another language. If you ever stumble upon a meme that you don't entirely understand, it might just be that it's not for you.

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#33

Topaz Emery

Topaz Emery Report

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_-DungeonKeeper-_
Community Member
5 months ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Young My Idiotic Imagination That Keeps Making Mind Movies And Singing Assorted Ivycomb Songs When I Need To Pay Attention Or Sleep Why Can't I Ditch This Brain And Get A New One

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#45

Karman Millie

Karman Millie Report

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Pollywog
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's from one of my favorite Scooby Doo episodes with Batman, Robin, Penguin and Joker!!!

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#48

Rickitha Gardner

Rickitha Gardner Report

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Emo Nemo
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This would never happen. I look at the menu online and practice before getting to the restaurant.

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#49

C Lesha Seward

C Lesha Seward Report

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Little Wonder
Community Member
5 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The knowledge that your PC takes 4 minutes to boot, and it's 20 seconds to the desk is very dangerous when you work from home and have a snooze button.

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#50

Jo Evans

Jo Evans Report

Note: this post originally had 80 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.