I Know Small
Inflections also styled I Know Small; pl. unchanged
A self-deprecating declaration that one possesses little knowledge, skill, or understanding of a subject; the deadpan inverse of the boast "I know ball."
Said in modest or rueful contrast to another who claims competence; an admission of being out of one's depth.
“You really know your cinema; me, I know small.”
— Professor Sendy
As an interjection: a flat, comic concession of ignorance offered in place of an answer.
“Asked to explain the lore, he simply shrugged and said, "I know small."”
— Professor Sendy
Inflections knows small; knew small; knowing small
To understand or be skilled in something to a negligible degree; to lack expertise while affecting none.
“I know small, but I'll watch you do the peanemis anyway.”
— Professor Sendy
Synonyms
Word History
wombo blend of "smart" and the internet slang phrase "I know ball" (an expression of competence or expertise, especially regarding sports or, more broadly, of "getting it"). Coined by Professor Sendy. The construction is doubly punning: the sense of "smart" is folded into "I know ball," whose final word "ball" is in turn deformed toward "small," yielding a phrase whose surface meaning ("I know small," i.e. I know little) is the comic inversion of the cleverness the parent words imply.
First Known Use 2026
Coinage credited to Professor Sendy.
Attested in the source utterance, @ProfessorSendy ↗