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Kunsan Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Who would have known it figures
Hello
I've got a question regarding the expression "it figures". It has some meanings, according to the dictionary, but I'm not sure which one applies to the following context.
It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought ... it figures
(the chorus from Ironic, a song by Alanis Morissette)
How would you interpret "it figures" in the above case? Does it refer back to the good advice, which turned out to 'figure' (be important, matter) after all? Or is it a concluding remark, meaning 'to make sense, to be reasonable', indicating that life's ironic twists and turns are not that surprising after all?
I suppose this is half linguistics, half literature, but I'd be grateful to hear your take on this.
Regards
Kunsan
I've got a question regarding the expression "it figures". It has some meanings, according to the dictionary, but I'm not sure which one applies to the following context.
It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought ... it figures
(the chorus from Ironic, a song by Alanis Morissette)
How would you interpret "it figures" in the above case? Does it refer back to the good advice, which turned out to 'figure' (be important, matter) after all? Or is it a concluding remark, meaning 'to make sense, to be reasonable', indicating that life's ironic twists and turns are not that surprising after all?
I suppose this is half linguistics, half literature, but I'd be grateful to hear your take on this.
Regards
Kunsan
Top answer
Hi, The speaker is saying that ironic things happen a lot in life. 'It figures' means 'This makes sense, this can be expected'. eg A: On Monday Tom won free beer for life in a beer company contest.
- Hi, The speaker is saying that ironic things happen a lot in life.
- 'It figures' means 'This makes sense, this can be expected'.
- eg A: On Monday Tom won free beer for life in a beer company contest.
- On Tuesday he got hit and killed by a beer truck.
- B: It figures.
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2 Answers
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Hi,
The speaker is saying that ironic things happen a lot in life. 'It figures' means 'This makes sense, this can be expected'.
eg
A: On Monday Tom won free beer for life in a beer company contest. On Tuesday he got hit and killed by a
The speaker is saying that ironic things happen a lot in life. 'It figures' means 'This makes sense, this can be expected'.
eg
A: On Monday Tom won free beer for life in a beer company contest. On Tuesday he got hit and killed by a
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