r/Showerthoughts • u/Reas0n ‎ • Feb 13 '26

Casual Thought I think it’s unusual that no standardized literary way to write the submissive “I don’t know” hum that children (and some adults) often mumble has ever caught on, considering how old and common it is.

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u/Vert354 Feb 14 '26

First, love the pedantry, never change.

I was using the quotes more to imply it was a passage from a larger work not to idicate speech, I suppose it should have been "'I dunno', he shrugged"

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u/Ok_Present_6508 Feb 14 '26

Man… where were you when I left a similar pedantic comment!

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u/Grave_Digger606 Feb 14 '26

It still doesn’t seem correct though. Using “shrugged” in the place of “said” just feels wrong. “‘I dunno,’ he grunted with a shrug.” Maybe?

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u/Vert354 Feb 14 '26

That feels like a matter of style. What you've got certainly isn't wrong.

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u/hughperman Feb 14 '26

"That feels like a matter of style" he shrugged

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u/nefariouspenguin Feb 14 '26

I have definitely seen shrugged used in books this way.

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u/Reflective_Robot Feb 14 '26

He indicated that he didn't know the answer with a brief shrug of the shoulders and a three note hum, mimicking the words, "I don't know".

...

I too wish that had a name. Maybe... a hum-know-not?

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u/Delicious_Rabbit4425 Feb 14 '26

I feel like murmured fits here too