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Pausing for a mouthful in the middle of a sentence?


Laura Corin
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96 members have voted

  1. 1. Is it rude to take a mouthful in the middle of a sentence?

    • Rude
      67
    • Not rude
      1
    • Not ideal but no big deal
      21
    • Other
      7


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Rude'ish.

I think it depends on the context & type of meal. Three people quickly grabbing breakfast on way out the door in the morning - pretty much anything goes.

Sit down dinner with family - well, maybe you can get away with this but it's not nice.

Sit down any meal with people outside of immediate family - nope.

Can't imagine anyone doing much of this in our home because nobody would wait for you to finish your sentence. Someone would just nod & finish your sentence for you or just grab the conversation somewhere else altogether. 

You'd have to be making a pretty dramatic announcement for any chance of holding the floor:

"I wanted to tell you that I did get that letter from the International Exposure to Radiation and Possible Superpower Identification Authority, and..." pause to take bite & thoughtfully chew. 

"I have decided to let you know that I've been living a lie and my true identity is....." pause to take bite & thoughtfully chew.

"That dead guy in the hallway....." pause to take bite & thoughtfully chew.



We might wait calmly & politely but probably someone would just throw a dinner roll at you, and everyone else would just start talking.

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Meh. I agree with Hornblower that the context matters. Grabbing breakfast or fast food quickly is different from sitting down for a fancy meal or eating Thanksgiving dinner with extended family and guests. Also the duration matters a little. Doing it once or twice in a meal isn't something I'm going to notice much. Doing it repeatedly throughout a meal, with really long pauses... yeah, that's going to get annoying.

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That would NEVER happen in my household. EVER.

 

I have a husband with ADHD and a son with ADHD. If they detect even the tiniest of pauses between words, say to take a quick gaspy inhale, they will totally swoop in and take over the conversation. I have seriously (*seriously*) considered making them use a Talking Stick. No one is allowed to talk unless they're holding the stick. I'm so tired of having to speak at super speed because someone is going to wrest the conversation away from me if I pause in any manner.

 

Someone pausing to put food in their mouth and give it a chew? Hahahaha! Not unless you expect the conversation to go in 3 different directions before you're done chewing and then come back around to you.

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I've never thought about it, but I'm 100% certain I do this if my husband and I are eating something after the kids have gone to bed. It's not that I'm trying to be rude. It's just that it is so rare to have food sitting in front of me that I can eat without little people trying to take it that eating becomes my primary mission. He's already heard most of what I have to say, and he knows me well enough to guess what will be new. :)

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I wouldn't recommend it. But then again, there are situations where you either talk while eating or you don't talk or you don't eat.  :P

 

Depends on how long of a sentence, how quick of a bite, who's listening, and why they couldn't wait.

 

I think I'd assume the person was super hungry.  :)

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Other - I don't talk at all while eating, neither do my children. Just ask Rosie. Last time she was here she could not believe the silent table while everyone sat down, ate, then left the table ( DH was not here). 

 

I guess my mother's teaching me to not talk while eating really was effective :D

 

 

DH however talks non-stop eating or not.

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What about functions where you are supposed to be social and eat at the same time? And are supposed to finish your meal within a time constraint?

 

I can see it being hard to balance.

 

You don't go hungry. You eat very small bites so you can still converse. It's a farce really and should not be called "dinner."  :)

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In the middle of a sentence would be rude. If it is an honored guest and the person is having a mouthful between sentences then that would be common since between answering and photo-taking, the person has little chance to catch a bite.

Even for family, it's finish the sentence than grab a bite so that the sentence is not hanging in midair. If it is pause in mid-sentence to get a sip of water/juice/wine then it's not a big deal.

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