--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When people call people nerds, mostly…" description: "\"“When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is 'You like stuff!”\" — John Green" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg" --- # When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying… ![“When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is 'You like stuff!” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg) > ““When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is 'You like stuff!”” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being called a nerd often reflects admiration for curiosity and passion. **In simple terms:** Nerd = curious. Key Takeaway Celebrate intellectual interests. Themes identity curiosity acceptance Mood playful thoughtful Type inspirational humorous When to use this quote - school settings - online communities - friendship circles - creative projects Key Concepts nerd culture social labeling self‑esteem Questions to Reflect On - How does embracing nerdiness affect confidence? - What stereotypes persist about intellectuals? A Different Perspective Some may view nerdiness negatively. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Nerd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nerd/) [Nerds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nerds/) ## Related quotes > [Hank, when people call people nerds mostly what they're saying is,'You like stuff'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/hank-when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is, 'you like stuff.' Which is not a good insult at all, like, 'you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you-like/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nerds like us are allowed to be unironically enthusiastic about stuff. Nerds are allowed to love stuff, like jump-up-and-down-in-your-chair-can't-control-yourself love it. when people call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nerds-like-us-are-allowed-to-be-unironically-enthusiastic-about-stuff/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [What I think makes people nerds is just being obsessive. I think that's what nerdiness really is - its people who don't just passively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-posehn/what-i-think-makes-people-nerds-is-just-being-obsessive-i-think-that/) [Brian Posehn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-posehn/) > […because nerds like us are allowed to be unironically enthusiastic about stuff… Nerds are allowed to love stuff, like jump-up-and-down-in-the-chair-can’t-control-yourself love it. Hank, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/because-nerds-like-us-are-allowed-to-be-unironically-enthusiastic/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“- Aunt Artie? - Why do you keep saying it like that? We loved each other more than anything. I can't imagine we could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/aunt-artie-why-do-you-keep-saying-it-like-that-we-loved-each-other/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [My laboratory,' I said, experimentally, drawing out each syllable. 'Why is it that saying it like that always makes me want to follow it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/my-laboratory-i-said-experimentally-drawing-out-each-syllable-why-is/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [Bobby made references to me a few times on Show Me The Money. He seemed to enjoy using words like 'sangnamja (T/N: true man,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-nam-joon/bobby-made-references-to-me-a-few-times-on-show-me-the-money-he/) [Kim Nam-joon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-nam-joon/) > [Why do you seem so annoyed at what I'm saying?" "Because we're too much like each other. I loathe your face, which is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/why-do-you-seem-so-annoyed-at-what-i-m-saying-because-we-re-too-much/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [When people compliment me, I always think it's fake ... I don't know why, it's like they're only saying it because the like me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila/when-people-compliment-me-i-always-think-it-s-fake-i-don-t-know-why/) [Leila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila/) > [I have no interest in saying "This is who I am! This is what I'm like!"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jen-kirkman/i-have-no-interest-in-saying-this-is-who-i-am-this-is-what-i-m-like/) [Jen Kirkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jen-kirkman/) > [What's Shobhaa De's problem with me and my son? What does she mean by saying, 'Like father, like son?' Let the truth come out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aditya-pancholi/what-s-shobhaa-de-s-problem-with-me-and-my-son-what-does-she-mean-by/) [Aditya Pancholi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aditya-pancholi/) > [I know people are saying they like you. I'm not being insulted or pushed around or anything. People are coming up because they like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-freeman/i-know-people-are-saying-they-like-you-i-m-not-being-insulted-or/) [Morgan Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-freeman/) > [I think people have this stereotypical idea in their head of what a nerd is. People have said to me before, "You're not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hardwick/i-think-people-have-this-stereotypical-idea-in-their-head-of-what-a/) [Chris Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hardwick/) > [In our society we have hard nerds and soft nerds. The hard nerds are the ones who used to have the slide rules at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kay/in-our-society-we-have-hard-nerds-and-soft-nerds-the-hard-nerds-are/) [Alan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kay/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Nerd quotes > [In our society we have hard nerds and soft nerds. The hard nerds are the ones who used to have the slide rules at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kay/in-our-society-we-have-hard-nerds-and-soft-nerds-the-hard-nerds-are/) [Alan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kay/) > [“Adam could imagine what he looked like: a debauched nerd.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullinan/adam-could-imagine-what-he-looked-like-a-debauched-nerd/) [Heidi Cullinan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullinan/) > [Being a geek is extremely liberating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-pegg/being-a-geek-is-extremely-liberating/) [Simon Pegg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-pegg/) > [“You’re the witch, dude.  I’m the data geek. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debora-geary/you-re-the-witch-dude-i-m-the-data-geek/) [Debora Geary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debora-geary/) > [“I wasn’t a nerd, mind you, but I’d spent a lot of my youth studying Epics, so I’d had limited experience with social interaction.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/i-wasn-t-a-nerd-mind-you-but-i-d-spent-a-lot-of-my-youth-studying/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [Yeah, I'm a geek. I read sci-fi and I watch sci-fi films. I love my computer and I love to fix it. I'm a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-benson/yeah-i-m-a-geek-i-read-sci-fi-and-i-watch-sci-fi-films-i-love-my/) [Amber Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-benson/) > [I used to work in a record store. I'm kind of a record nerd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-stump/i-used-to-work-in-a-record-store-i-m-kind-of-a-record-nerd/) [Patrick Stump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-stump/) > [Instead of finding himself in nerd heaven—where every nerd gets fifty-eight virgins to role-play with—he woke up in Robert Wood Johnson with two broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/instead-of-finding-himself-in-nerd-heaven-where-every-nerd-gets-fifty/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [I am a geek. I am an otaku.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masi-oka/i-am-a-geek-i-am-an-otaku/) [Masi Oka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masi-oka/) > [I shopped at J. Crew in high school, I studied computer science. I was a nerd-nerd, now I'm a music-nerd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayer-hawthorne/i-shopped-at-j-crew-in-high-school-i-studied-computer-science-i-was-a/) [Mayer Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayer-hawthorne/) > [I'm a nerd. Total geek. I never went to homecoming or prom or anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-hayes/i-m-a-nerd-total-geek-i-never-went-to-homecoming-or-prom-or-anything/) [Hunter Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-hayes/) > [I was a super nerd in school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-bridges/i-was-a-super-nerd-in-school/) [Chloe Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-bridges/) > [Any nerd who grew up around the time that I did, BBC programming was a treasure chest for us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hardwick/any-nerd-who-grew-up-around-the-time-that-i-did-bbc-programming-was-a/) [Chris Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hardwick/) > [I loved the idea of the Nerd as Hero, which Ghost World also had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/illeana-douglas/i-loved-the-idea-of-the-nerd-as-hero-which-ghost-world-also-had/) [Illeana Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/illeana-douglas/) > [At the age of 11 I was about 6 ft. tall and my voice had completely broken. That caused problems. I was this gangly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-stevens/at-the-age-of-11-i-was-about-6-ft-tall-and-my-voice-had-completely/) [Dan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-stevens/) [Browse all 919 Nerd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nerd/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is 'You like stuff!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you-like-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nerd" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you-like-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f0/john-green-12_quote_when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-wha_1433173.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When people call people nerds, mostly what they're saying is 'You like stuff!” — John Green", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Green", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“When people call people nerds, mostly...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you-like-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-people-call-people-nerds-mostly-what-they-re-saying-is-you-like-2/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```