As humans we are sometimes guilty of forgetting, whether it is an appointment, an incident, person or idea. There are many ways to create humor around the subject matter of being forgetful which is this write-up’s goal to achieve.
Whatever it is that you forgot, you can jokingly let the individual know to not build tension. These 50 phrases use different means like throwing shade, making a joke to highlight forgetfulness as a bad habit or character.
More steps are made through the examples provided so you can be fully aware of how these phrases can come in handy and to perfectly use in a sentence.
50 Lighthearted Ways to Say You Forgot
Here are funny ways to say that you forgot perhaps a person, an appointment, or a certain occurrence.
- It slipped my mind.
- I had temporary amnesia.
- It must have slipped out of my brain’s back door.
- My memory was erased.
- It ran from my mind.
- I had it, but then I blinked.
- It was right there, and then—poof!—gone.
- My memory does not have a back up.
- My brain got tired and slept for a second.
- I left it in my second brain.
- I filed it somewhere safe… too safe.
- Looks like my mental sticky note fell off.
- It evaporated into thin air.
- My memory failed me.
- It fell into the black hole of my mind.
- I let the memory go.
- It came to me… but then I got distracted.
- It’s in my brain’s lost and found. Mostly lost.
- I parked that thought, and now I’ve lost the ticket.
- I left it on the memory train with no station.
- I’m having a temporary brain freeze.
- It’s on the tip of my tongue… but my tongue is lazy.
- I was going to tell you, but my brain hit delete.
- It’s gone, just like my milk tooth.
- I had it, but it wandered off like a toddler in a mall.
- It’s somewhere between ‘I’ll remember’ and “I forgot.”
- That memory’s playing hide and seek right now.
- My brain dropped dead but rose again this morning.
- I put that thought in the wrong mental drawer.
- My brain just recycled around that memory.
- I moved the incident to my beautiful memory bin.
- I tried to think, but nothing happened.
- It’s probably still on hold.
- It slipped through my mental cracks.
- It fell out of my mental pocket.
- My brain is on a break.
- My brain ghosted me on that one.
- It vanished from my mind.
- It’s been washed away completely from my mind.
- I put the memory to sleep.
- I thought I saved it to my brain’s hard drive but I didn’t.
- I drained it out of my memory system.
- It walked away from my brain.
- I knew it until you asked.
- I forgot it as fast as I learned it.
- That thought fell off my mind.
- I misplaced it in my brain’s membrane.
- It became forsaken in my mind.
- My brain got wiped out.
- I lost the memory when I moved my head.
It slipped my mind.
“It slipped my mind” is a funny way to say that you forgot something or action.
So, if you’re looking for how to jokingly tell someone why you couldn’t make it for an event just make this funny expression.
Illustration:
- Did you say that I should come back last week? Oh! I am so sorry, it slipped my mind like I slipped on bananas.
I had temporary amnesia.
Amnesia is a sickness that involves loss of memory.
In this phrase exaggeration is used to create humor that you forgot to do a particular task or text someone back.
Illustration:
- I didn’t know we were supposed to go out together last night, I had temporary amnesia.
It must have slipped out of my brain’s back door.
The use of the words “brain’s back door” is a funny way to say that a person forgot.
Even though a brain does not have a door, it sends the message that you forgot to do something.
Illustration:
- It must have slipped out of my brain’s back door that we were supposed to attend the party yesterday.
My memory was erased.
This is a classic dramatic and comical way of expressing that something slipped your mind.
Unlike a hard drive, the human memory is not something that can be erased.
Illustration:
- Immediately I got home from church, everything you told me, it was like my memory was erased.
It ran from my mind.
“It ran from my mind” is an hilarious way of saying that you forgot because you’re suggesting that information has arms and legs to ‘run’ or leave your mind.
Illustration:
- He said some things but it ran out of my mind.
I had it, but then I blinked.
There’s no way that blinking could make a person forget a certain information, but it is a hilarious way of letting someone know that you forgot a piece of information.
Illustration:
- When she told me to answer the question, I had it, but then I blinked.
It was right there, and then—poof!—gone.
“Poof” is an exclamatory word used to represent that something disappeared. It is mostly used to refer to supernatural occurrences.
Illustration:
- I don’t understand how that test went, the answers in my brain but then, poof! All gone!
My memory does not have a back up.
Backup is required to prevent a memory from being wiped or lost which is the true essence of a funny phrase like this.
Saying you don’t have it, means that you don’t have what it takes to hold on to information.
Illustration:
- I know you already told me about it but my memory does not have a back up.
My brain got tired and slept for a second.
This is a funny use of the figure of speech which uses the word ‘brain’ to translate that you snoozed off for a second and do not recall what has happened prior.
Illustration:
- My brain got tired and slept for a second so I decided to start all over again.
I left it in my second brain.
There’s no such a thing as a second brain which highlights the joke in this phrase. It passes the message that there’s no information that is stored in the actual brain.
Illustration:
- I don’t understand what I’ll do about this, I left it in my second brain and it’s not functional.
I filed it somewhere safe… too safe.
Some could relate to a person keeping something too much that you don’t even know where it is kept anymore.
This is what this phrase highlights and turns into humor.
Illustration:
- I filed it somewhere safe… too safe that I can’t even find it anymore.
Looks like my mental sticky note fell off.
‘Looks like my mental sticky note fell off’ is another phrase that implies that you forgot something.
You could decide to text this to your friends or close relatives to be a funny bone.
Illustration:
- Looks like my mental sticky note fell off and I can’t seem to locate where it is.
It evaporated into thin air.
“It evaporated into thin air” means that the piece of information received by you initially has suddenly vanished.
Let’s see how it can be used in an illustration.
Illustration:
- The secret she told me about the other day evaporated into thin air.
My memory failed me.
The memory is where things are stored and to imply that it has failed you means that you’ve simply forgotten something or someone.
Illustration:
- I was so mad at you for a particular reason but now it’s like my memory failed me.
It fell into the black hole of my mind.
“A black hole” is a phrase that means a gap or a void of emptiness which suggests that you have a gap in your memory or there’s a certain knowledge that you no longer hold in your mind.
Illustration:
- The memory of the boy fell into the black hole of my mind.
I let the memory go.
Letting something (memory) go is a lighthearted way of saying that you forgot something.
You don’t have to struggle to figure out how to put this to use, it has been illustrated below.
Illustration:
- After a while of resenting her, I just let the memory go, I gave it wings to fly away.
It came to me… but then I got distracted.
Getting distracted doesn’t always mean that you forgot to do something, sometimes it could be an excuse or the reason not to do something which is highlighted in this funny phrase.
Illustration:
- It came to me… but then I got distracted, I got distracted by a much better looking man.
It’s in my brain’s lost and found. Mostly lost.
This is an hilarious way to say that you forgot someone or something. It likens the situation to “loss and found” which is a good way to begin a joke or a funny statement.
Illustration:
- I wish I hadn’t put what she told me in my brain’s lost and found section.
I parked that thought, and now I’ve lost the ticket.
Another funny way you forgot is that you can imply that you had the thought ‘parked’ but now you’ve lost the “parking ticket.”
If you’re the type who enjoys humor, you can settle for this phrase.
Illustration:
- I parked that thought, and now I’ve lost the ticket to it, what I’m I going to do?
I left it on the memory train with no station.
Let’s say you’re trying to make a joke about how you forgot a certain date or number, this is a funny way you can get your friend, partner or family member to laugh about it and hopefully not get upset that you forgot an appointment.
Illustration:
- I left it on the memory train with no station and trust me, I am not going back there.
I’m having a temporary brain freeze.
It is when cold things, drinks or substances are consumed by humans that they experience brain freeze.
This is why this expression is one that is funny and easily relatable.
Illustration:
- I am just so terrible at remembering things, even though you told me, I still had to act like I had a temporary brain freeze.
It’s on the tip of my tongue… but my tongue is lazy.
Maybe you wanted to answer a question in class or in a study group and you forgot, one way you can be funny about expressing the issue is by using this phrase.
Illustration:
- It’s on the tip of my tongue… but my tongue is lazy and can’t do anything right now.
I was going to tell you, but my brain hit delete.
To delete something or a piece or information is to wipe out something. It is mostly to use ‘delete’ for technologies rather for a human brain which makes this expression funny.
Illustration:
- I was going to tell you, but my brain hit delete and I’m certain it does not have a recycle bin.
It’s gone, just like my milk tooth.
Milk tooth is the first set of teeth grown in the early stages of human life but overtime it is then removed and the permanent ones replace it.
This reference of a milk tooth fits into a funny scenario where you express you forgot something.
Illustration:
- It’s gone, just like my milk tooth, it is never coming back to me even though you wait for a decade.
I had it, but it wandered off like a toddler in a mall.
The simile (comparison of two elements using ‘as’ or ‘like’) is used to highlight the situation that your recollection about a certain event or person is vague.
Illustration:
- I had it, but it wandered off like a toddler in a mall. I hope the police find it soon.
It’s somewhere between ‘I’ll remember’ and “I forgot.”
Being forgetful is already bad enough but having a good sense of humor can help you look less thoughtful.
With this type of phrase you stand a chance to be less offensive.
Illustration:
- What you told me about last night is somewhere between ‘I’ll remember’ and “I forgot.”
That memory’s playing hide and seek right now.
It could be that you forgot how a silly argument went with your friend and you want them to know that it’s no longer in your mind, a phrase can help you express and laugh about it.
Illustration:
- That memory’s playing hide and seek right now and I suck at that game.
My brain dropped dead but rose again this morning.
This phrase combines dark humor with dramatic gestures in order to make it a successful way to say that you forgot in a funny way.
Adding gestures like playing dead or rolling your eyes like you’re tired helps the phrase sound funny.
Illustration:
- My brain dropped dead but rose again this morning, hallelujah!
I put that thought in the wrong mental drawer.
Also, “I put that thought in the wrong mental drawer” is a way to fill someone in on the fact that you forgot about a certain thing or issue.
“The mental drawer” is an hilarious reference to pass the message across.
Illustration:
- I put that thought in the wrong mental drawer and I have to pay dearly for it.
My brain just recycled around that memory.
If the goal is to tell someone that you forgot and then remembered later, a certain memory, you can articulate it in a funny way using this phrase.
Illustration:
- I think my brain just recycled around that memory, it’s old news.
I moved the incident to my beautiful memory bin.
“Memory bin” is a humorous way of implying that the memory has been discarded or banished from your mind and can’t be revisited.
Illustration:
- The memory of an incident that happened at the gym, I moved it to my beautiful memory bin.
I tried to think, but nothing happened.
When trying to remember a certain information, it requires thinking and to imply that “nothing happened,” it means that you forgot.
Let’s check out the examples below.
Illustration:
- I tried to think, but nothing happened. I don’t know what made that happen.
It’s probably still on hold.
Illustration:
- If you ask me why I don’t remember what took place between them, I would say it is probably still on hold.
It slipped through my mental cracks.
“It slipped through my mental cracks” is another way to say that you forgot.
Whenever you’re trying to come up with a funny excuse as to why you couldn’t do something you can say you forgot in this funny way.
Illustration:
- I’m sorry that our wedding anniversary date slipped through my mental cracks.
It fell out of my mental pocket.
Saying a memory of a certain event fell out of your mental pocket is an informal and hilarious way to say you forgot something.
The illustration below shows how it can be used.
Illustration:
- Please, I didn’t know your birthday was on the 15th, It fell out of my mental pocket.
My brain is on a break.
Going on a break is good but wouldn’t it be ridiculous to say that our brain went on a break as well?
It simply means that a person’s brain is not retentive to a memory.
Illustration:
- My brain is on a break at the moment and that’s why things happened the way it did.
My brain ghosted me on that one.
In this context, ghost means to avoid or ignore a certain thing or person.
Even though this is a figurative expression, it also light heartedly says that you forgot.
Illustration:
- When it comes to remembering wedding anniversaries, my brain ghosts me on that one.
It vanished from my mind.
If you want to articulate that the answers to a question or the occurrence of an event was forgotten by you, you can be funny about it by saying it this way.
Illustration:
- It vanished from my mind way before I met you, I promise.
It’s been washed away completely from my mind.
‘It’s been washed away completely from my mind’ is an over the top statement that implies that you forgot an event.
“Washing” in this context means to clean or to no longer have the memory of an event.
Illustration:
- The terrific memory has been washed away completely from my mind.
I put the memory to sleep.
When a person is asleep, it is normal not to be aware of the things happening which is the same for this funny phrase.
Now, you don’t have to just say you forgot something in a basic manner, you can add a touch of humor.
Illustration:
- I put the memory to sleep about the day that we went out.
I thought I saved it to my brain’s hard drive but I didn’t.
“I thought I saved it to my brain’s hard drive but I didn’t” is a funny reference to an inanimate object with a hard drive (where information is stored) and is likened to a living being.
Illustration:
- Oh! My goodness, I thought I saved it to my brain’s hard drive but I didn’t.
I drained it out of my memory system.
Memory isn’t liquid that it can be drained out of someone which is the highlight of where the joke lies in this phrase.
Next time, settle for comic relief in your response with this expression.
Illustration:
- I should have told you, what happened was that I drained it out of my memory system.
It walked away from my brain.
The chances of memories growing legs to walk is probably zero.
Text this to your friends and see how hard they laugh.
Illustration:
- I remembered yesterday but now, it has gone away from my brain.
I knew it until you asked.
In a situation where you knew the answer but it just felt like the wind blew it away, you can let your friends know through the words of this funny expression.
Illustration:
- I knew it until you asked, I just understand why it’s gone.
I forgot it as fast as I learned it.
“I forgot it as fast as I learned it” places emphasis on the duration or speed of how the information was retained by you.
If you want your friend to know how fast you forgot something, let this funny phrase help you.
Illustration:
- I was just as fast to learn philosophy as I was fast to forget it.
That thought fell off my mind.
‘That thought fell off my mind” is a funny way to say that you forgot.
For a thought to fall off your mind as if it is a book or a holdable object, it means you’re trying to be funny about it.
Illustration:
- That thought fell off my mind, I shouldn’t have allowed it though.
I misplaced it in my brain’s membrane.
The brain membrane in biology means the brain walls and where the brain nerves are located.
For a thought to be lost in there is impossible, but it is a sarcastic way to say you forgot.
Illustration:
- I misplaced it in my brain’s membrane, I pray we find it.
It became forsaken in my mind.
When you don’t visit a thought for a long time, there’s a chance that you won’t remember it anymore.
The above phrase proves that point and presents it in a comical way.
Illustration:
- It became forsaken in my mind, I’m sure it has died of starvation.
My brain got wiped out.
“Wiped out” means that it has been cleaned or erased, in some cases, it can be referred to as alienated.
For the brain to be anyone of these, is an exaggerated way of saying that you forgot something.
Illustration:
- My brain got wiped out, if not, I would have remembered.
I lost the memory when I moved my head.
This is a phrase that will get anyone to laugh in any type of scenario.
Next time, when you want your friend or partner to know you forgot something, being funny about it would be of good help.
Illustration:
- I lost the memory when I moved my head too hard, my bad.
