Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Break Down Their Weirdest 'It Runs In The Family' Traits

People Break Down Their Weirdest 'It Runs In The Family' Traits
Image by Niek Verlaan from Pixabay

The strangest things can keep a family together.


Barring the (hopeful) love and support you all share for one another, there's an underlying understanding that runs through a family tree. Sometimes it's an inside joke, started years ago on a family vacation in one specific moment which would take far too long to explain to people who weren't there. Other times it's a physical quirk, an odd tic of sorts the entire tree possesses, separating you from the rest of the pack. Whatever traits run in the family, it keeps them together in a way that would make Dominic Toretto from "Fast and the Furious" proud.

Reddit user, u/Turuu_Was_Taken, wanted to hear how your family sticks together when they asked:

What are your absolutely weirdest "it runs in the family" traits or characteristics?

Some "runs in the family" traits are funny, quirky, and, overall, hopefully non-harmful?

Dangerously Sleepy

"We all sleep walk and sleep talk, mom and dad both did it, my siblings and children do it."

"Best one is my mom, she's a saint during the day but 10 minutes after she dozes off she starts screaming and cursing like a trucker. It's funny because if she goes somewhere we have to explain in advance what will happen."

"She's harmless for the most part, she has tossed and broken a few remote controls that she left on the bed next to her though."

"Me I'm a sleep walker/talker and eater, I check the locks, the gas on the stove, then raid the fridge and eat anything that I can get my hands on."

MadLintElf

Half-Legolas

"I have one slightly pointed ear, my grandfather had it too, and apparently his grandfather. So we have an elf ear that runs in the family that skips a generation. Also none of my siblings or cousins have it so it hits one person every other generation… weird."

I_hate_Swansea

There's No Stopping The Onion Train

"Everyone on my dad's side of the family becomes allergic to onions and garlic around age 40. I have 10 years left and then I need to do some serious research into alternative seasoning."

ParaTodoMalMezcal

"How sensitive? Fermented garlic in honey may be a solution for you."

apoliticalinactivist

"I'm not sure if it's technically an allergy, it's only if it's eaten and it causes pretty nasty stomach issues. Apparently, it's less severe if the onions/garlic are cooked but still bad enough that my dad/uncle/grandmother avoid those ingredients."

ParaTodoMalMezcal

Handle It All

"Toe thumbs. (look up Megan Fox's thumbs, it's like that)"

Agentcowboyhollow

Window Cleaners Share The Best Things They've Ever Seen | George Takei’s Oh Myyy

*insert squawking noises

"Pretty much everyone on my dad's side of the family, like most of his siblings (he has 8) and then some of their kids, me included, have what we call "bird legs."

"We all have pretty long legs, and whenever we walk our knees knock together. It doesn't seem that bad, but on hot, humid days, it makes my legs/knees supper itchy from the constant rubbing, and I can't do anything about it."

HoneysLemon

Maybe the crew all react a certain way to things. This kind of behavior comes from years of learning, watching one another, and incorporating those actions into our own routines.

Kick Them Demons Away

"Kicking our feet when falling asleep. My whole family does it, we all feel uncomfortable unless we do."

ugg_monster

All Power, No Technique

"The men in my family have a considerable amount of natural brute strength. We are all built like linebackers with extremely broad shoulders. But here's the rub. It is great for jobs and tasks that require pure strength but we have a lot of issues using it for skill related purposes. You need something heavy lifted,, torn off, or moved,...great! Give me a call. You need a skill position on a sports team? Well maybe not."

"When up to bat I really have a hard time hitting past the infield. Three point shooting in basketball was embarrassing how often I airballed until I worked like crazy on my technique. It is funny to think back how other parents were always wary about us playing with other kids our age when younger. I guess they thought at any minute we would just pick up one of their kids and defenestrate them on a whim."

TheUnblinkingEye1001

Just Have One Of Those Faces

"My mom has this odd thing about her in that random people will just approach her and talk to her about pretty much anything. You'd think that she knew these people her whole life, but no. I never understood what was up with that until it started to happen to me. For about a decade now, I'm constantly having unexpectedly long and in-depth conversations with complete strangers."

PerpetuallyVerdant

Locking On To Something And Staying

"Addiction gene I guess. Whether it's smoking, alcohol, pills, cars, cleaning, food. There is something each person from my dads side is addicted to. It's not like a passion or hobby. Like real REAL addiction. Idkk lol I guess it's got to do with some sort of psychological satisfaction thing. (There are a lot of mental health problems too but all of them are supportive amazing people)"

Visual-Chocolate3352

And then there's these traits, generated deep down in the blood, and passed from generation to generation.

How Much Time Do You Have?

"My family is full of genetic oddities and weird quirks."

"Our canines grow in higher up the gums and over lay other teeth like fangs."

"We're all born with large, pointed ears that round out by 3."

"Our eyes shift color with sun exposure. Mine are dark brown for most of the year but turn almost gold in summer where my mum's go from emerald to an almost ghostly white."

"We're abnormally warm blooded, I normally sit around 99.8 or higher."

"One boy from every generation never leaves home, but fortunately I think that one ended with our line."

Postmortal_Pop

Coffee Is Full Of Sound And Fury, Signifying Nothing

"Multiple people in my family have Meniere's Diseasse, which, among other things, makes it so consuming caffeine makes us go deaf."

Notmiefault

"What? How? Why? Does it go away? How long does it last?"

deterministic_lynx

"Basically our inner ear sucks at fluid balance, and caffeine messes with it further, exacerbating the problem and making us go deaf and dizzy. Hearing and balance fluctuate day to day, but with management it's not too bad."

Notmiefault

Extra...Teeth?

"In my family all of us from my dad's side can crack just about everything. Not just the usual knuckle cracking but also toes, ankles, elbows, knees, neck, wrist, back, nose, jaw, and hip. My mom always gets weirded out by it."

"Also, a lot of us have extra teeth. I had 6 wisdom teeth removed, my dad had 5, and I know a lot of people in my family just get extra teeth for some reason. Maybe we're shark idk. My dentist said that roughly 0.8% of the population has this."

SpurnedOne

...No Idea.

"Before we vomit our left hand goes numb, no idea why"

Lampnsalt

There We Go

"Webbed toes. My mom and I have them and so do my kids."

jdward01

Whatever keeps the family together, right? Even if that means kicking your feet while scratching your elf ears and having to no longer eat onions, so long as you're doing it together is what matters the most.

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

TikToker @richi_luvv; Sabrina Carpenter
@richi_luvv/TikTok; Sabrina Carpenter/YouTube

Kidz Bop Just Released A Cover Of A Super Suggestive Sabrina Carpenter Song—And Fans Are Not OK

Kidz Bop, the long-running music outfit that refashions pop songs for the ears of children, usually focuses on upbeat, bubble gum pop tunes, right?

It's like the kind of songs you'd hear at, say, the grocery store, retooled for the elementary school set.

Keep ReadingShow less
screenshot from Fox News broadcast
Fox News

Sean Hannity Roasted After Claiming His Friends In NYC Are 'Scared' After Mamdani's Win

When Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani won the Democratic primary for New York City mayor in June, Republicans and some old school Democrats were positively apoplectic.

An immigrant Muslim of Gujarati and Punjabi Indian parents who has lived in NYC since he was 7 years old, the 34-year-old New York State Assembly member was the stuff of nightmares for the MAGAsphere. Mamdani was a non-White, non-Christian, Uganda-born immigrant and progressive Democrat.

Keep ReadingShow less
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; Zohran Mamdani
Andres Kudacki/Getty Images; Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

AOC Has Democrats Applauding With Her Viral Reaction To Zohran Mamdani's Historic Win

New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had people nodding their heads after she opened up about why democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani's win in the New York City mayoral election on Tuesday is so important for the country at large as well as for the future of the Democratic Party.

Mamdani successfully took on the establishment to become the first South Asian, first Muslim, and first millennial mayor-elect, running a campaign that focused predominantly on the city's affordability crisis and that successfully batted away racist and Islamophobic backlash from right-wingers who claimed his policies would "destroy" the city.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Mike Johnson
Fox News

Mike Johnson Gets A Swift Reality Check After Trying To Downplay The Election Results

House Speaker Mike Johnson was called out after displaying his clear denial over Tuesday night's election wins for Democrats, claiming that "no one should read too much into" the results despite major upsets.

Democrats won races around the country, particularly in Virginia, where Abigail Spanberger became the first woman to the win the governorship in the state's history, and in New York City, where Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, successfully took on the establishment to become the first South Asian, first Muslim, and first millennial mayor-elect.

Keep ReadingShow less
A man in a suit walking down the sidewalk and pulling a bag
person in black suit jacket with r ed bag walking beside metal fence
Photo by Romain V on Unsplash

People Who Quit Their Jobs On Day One Reveal What Made Them Say 'Nope, Not Doing This'

Every now and then, simply because we need money, we might take a job that doesn't fulfill us in any way, but at least keeps our bank accounts happy.

Some jobs, however, are so soul-sucking that even with no other prospects immediately on the horizon, we can't, in good conscience, keep working them.

Keep ReadingShow less