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You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. I'm not as vanilla as I seem

• Thread starter Thread starter Arcoiris*
• Start date Start date Jun 21, 2009

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain Hi everybody! I was listening to a radio interview and one of the people is asked to fill in this sentence: "You're not as....as you look" He answers to complete the sentence "vanilla" and everybody burst in laughter. Could you possibly explain the joke, because I don't get it. Thanks in advance.

Vell Bruixot

Senior Member

XII Región-Patagonia/Antártica CHILE ENG Vanilla = plain vanilla = "boring" o sea aburrido. "No eres tan aburrido como pareces." I hope you are not as vanilla as you look = Espero que no seas tan aburrido como pareces. Hay otros significados.... Last edited: Jun 21, 2009

loladamore

Senior Member

Zacatecas, México English UK Vanilla can be used to mean plain, conventional and boring. In this case, I suppose the speaker means s/he's more interesting that people might think. I imagine it was the context that made the statement so amusing. Saludos

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain

Vell Bruixot said: Vanilla = plain vanilla = "boring" o sea aburrido. "No eres tan aburrido como pareces." I hope you are not as vanilla as you look = Espero que no seas tan aburrido como pareces. Hay otros significados.... Click to expand...

Thanks both of you for your speedy answers. And...could these meanings be the gist of the laughing? Could you be more especific, please? And by the way, how would you say Saludos! in English? Maybe See you!? See you soon!

Kibramoa

Senior Member

Heart of Texas, U.S.A. Spanish - MX -Completa la frase: no soy tan ____ como parezco. -Ah, no soy tan aburrido como parezco. Tal vez mucha gente tiene la imagen de que él es un abrurrido/una persona no muy alegre/insípido. Con esta frase cómica demuestra que en realidad no es como la gente cree.

Sowka

Forera und Moderatorin

Hannover, neben der Gernandesburg 👻 German, Northern Germany Hello maybe that some people in the audience took it as a description of his sex preferences? In this context, "Vanilla" means normal (and assumedly boring). It is used by people who prefer sado-masochism. That's what the Urban Dictionary says about it. Last edited: Jun 21, 2009 U

UUBiker

Senior Member

Arlington, Virignia United States, English I dunno, I think "non-vanilla" sex covers more than simply S&M sex. You know, dressing up as a nurse, or having sex in a semi-public place. You know, something to "spice up" one's sex life. B

Boo the Chancho

Member

English - United States Sowka's urban dictionary reference is a good one. Vanilla meaning "boring" is definitely not what made the radio show hosts laugh. I would wager a lot to say that the intended connotation was sexual, although I would add that I thought it had a racial connotation as well when I first read your post. Urban dictionary doesn't mention this and so it's possible I'm crazy, but sometimes slang in the US calls white and black women, sugar and brown sugar, and I've definitely heard white people called vanilla and black people called chocolate. Being chocolate is considered more exciting and more interesting/edgy/cool. It makes me think of the song "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)" by the Offspring--which is all about that implication that being white just naturally means you're less hardcore. In the US a white guy on the radio saying he's not as vanilla as he seems would absolutely get some laughs.

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain Thank you guys! Now it makes more sense to me.

Nopertenezco

Senior Member

Inglés Yo diría Vanilla = white = huero = gringo = gabacho Saludos

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain Well, now it also makes sense, because the guy who says that is French. I was wondering if it would be possible to post the link of the video in the youtube with the interview so you could pick the relevant information about this, just because maybe I didn't understood properly the context. So, what do you think guys?

Nopertenezco

Senior Member

Inglés

Arcoiris* said: Well, now it also makes sense, because the guy who says that is French. Click to expand...

Aquí en eeuu se usa gabacho para llamar a alguien de piel blanco. No se la usa como vosotros. Saludos

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain

Nopertenezco said: Aquí en eeuu se usa gabacho para llamar a alguien de piel blanco. No se la usa como vosotros. Saludos Click to expand...

Ok, because here in Spain it makes reference to French people as the guy in the interview is.

Nopertenezco

Senior Member

Inglés Habiendo dicho esto Creo que vanilla refiere a piel blanco. Al menos es como entiendo. Saludos B

Binario

Senior Member

USA Russia, Russian Pues, ser blanco es "aburrido" y es peor que ser negro? Me parece una idea bastante racista. De todos modos, viviendo en los EU esto no me sorprende para nada.

Nopertenezco

Senior Member

Inglés

Binario said: Pues, ser blanco es "aburrido" y es peor que ser negro? Me parece una idea bastante racista. De todos modos, viviendo en los EU esto no me sorprende para nada. Click to expand...

De acuerdo

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain

Binario said: Pues, ser blanco es "aburrido" y es peor que ser negro? Me parece una idea bastante racista. De todos modos, viviendo en los EU esto no me sorprende para nada. Click to expand...

I completely agree with you. H

honeyheart

Senior Member

Quilmes Spanish (Argentina) When I read the first post I thought of "vanilla" meaning "white skin", too. What I need to know, then, is if you knew the people that were talking, because maybe the laughter was due to the fact that it was a black person who said "I'm not as vanilla as I look"

Vell Bruixot

Senior Member

XII Región-Patagonia/Antártica CHILE ENG The expression "plain vanilla" for "very basic and boring" has been in US usage for nearly 100 years, and has in recent years morphed to just "vanilla" but conveying essentially the same meaning but also with some additional shades. So, another perspective, from a website: It is referred to as Vanilla, as in computer gaming, it is a standard slang word to refer to Original. In everyday slang, vanilla can mean unexciting, normal, conventional and boring, as opposed to the new, better and exciting .... Other web reference:

• Vanilla Valley (noun) = community lacking diversity --"everyone looked the same; it was like vanilla valley..."

There is a certain irony to the current slang meaning of "vanilla" since in the 19th century in the UK and elsewhere, the term vanilla was often used to mean "giving a nice flavour to something" or an enhancement. Hence such observed use as "Ah, you flavour everything, you are the vanilla of society." (circa 1855; cited in The Origins of English Words, by Shipley). Last edited: Jun 21, 2009

Arcoiris*

Senior Member

Spanish - Spain

honeyheart said: When I read the first post I thought of "vanilla" meaning "white skin", too. What I need to know, then, is if you knew the people that were talking, because maybe the laughter was due to the fact that it was a black person who said "I'm not as vanilla as I look" Click to expand...

No, just the other way around, it was the white person who said "I'm not as vanilla as I look" B

BravoZulu

New Member

Santiago-Chile Chileno Well, now it also makes sense, because the guy who says that is French. I was wondering if it would be possible to post the link of the video in the youtube with the interview so you could pick the relevant information about this, just because maybe I didn't understood properly the context. I didn't understand propelrly the context. ( correct) So, what do you think guys You must log in or register to reply here. Share: Bluesky LinkedIn WhatsApp Email Share Link

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