Side eye
The side eye meme is really an umbrella term: 'side eye' names a whole family of sideways skeptical looks rather than one image, and its flagship meme instance is Side Eyeing Chloe from 2013. The word itself is documented to March 19, 1797 in a London periodical, while the meme era started September 12, 2013 with KAftC's 'Lily's Disneyland Surprise... AGAIN' YouTube video.
Names & aliases
What’s it called?
One umbrella name, many instance formats — here is how the names nest.
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UmbrellaSide eye
The sideways look as a reaction; flagship meme instance is Side Eyeing Chloe (2013)
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Instanceside-eye
Dictionary form added to Merriam-Webster in February 2017 ('a sidelong glance or gaze especially when expressing scorn, suspicion, disapproval or veiled curiosity').
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Instancesidelong glance
Merriam-Webster's own definition wording for 'side-eye', quoted in KYM.
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InstanceSide Eyeing Chloe
Flagship image instance: Chloe's reaction in the 2013 'Lily's Disneyland Surprise... AGAIN' video (KYM).
Usage
How to use it
Tone
suspicious / skeptical.
Where it lands
Reacting to an obvious lie, a bad excuse, or suspicious behavior without saying a word.
How it evolved
The word: documented to March 19, 1797 (periodical Rememberancer for Lord's Day Evenings); the meme: September 12, 2013 (KAftC's 'Lily's Disneyland Surprise... AGAIN' video, featuring Chloe).
Easy to get wrong
'Side eye' names a whole family of sideways looks, not one image — the term, the Chloe GIF and political side-eye moments are all filed under it. And the dictionary spelling with a hyphen ('side-eye') vs. the meme spelling 'side eye' both appear in the wild.
Origin
Origin & timeline
- 2013The word: documented to March 19, 1797 (periodical Rememberancer for Lord's Day Evenings); the meme: September 12, 2013 (KAftC's 'Lily's Disneyland Surprise... AGAIN' video, featuring Chloe) — English print for the term; YouTube for the Chloe image; political news moments (Michelle Obama, 2017 inauguration) for later spikes
- 19221922: James Joyce uses 'a side eye' in Ulysses (KYM).
- 2013September 12, 2013: Chloe's disturbed sideways glance at her crying sister in the Disneyland-surprise video becomes a reaction GIF; on May 22, 2017 her Instagram posts the image for a Google ad, passing 333,000 likes in under a year (KYM).
- 2017January 20, 2017: Michelle Obama's sideways glance at the Tiffany's box from Melania Trump sparks jokes; in February 2017 Merriam-Webster adds 'side-eye' to the dictionary, tweeting that their earliest example is from 1797 (KYM).
- 2018February 9, 2018: the Kim Yo Jong / Mike Pence side-eye clip at the Winter Olympics goes viral (KYM).
Verifiable sources
Templates
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What does side eye mean?
Looking at someone to the side without moving your head. Merriam-Webster defines it as 'a sidelong glance or gaze especially when expressing scorn, suspicion, disapproval or veiled curiosity,' and added it to the dictionary in February 2017 (KYM).
Where did the term side eye come from?
It's old. Merriam-Webster's earliest example dates to 1797 in a periodical called Rememberancer for Lord's Day Evenings, and James Joyce used it in Ulysses in 1922 (KYM).
Who is the girl in the side eye meme?
Chloe. In KAftC's September 12, 2013 YouTube video 'Lily's Disneyland Surprise... AGAIN,' older sister Lily bursts into tears of joy while Chloe briefly flashes a disturbed sideways look. The frame became 'Side Eyeing Chloe' (KYM).
Is side eye in the dictionary?
Yes. Merriam-Webster added 'side-eye' in February 2017 and announced it with a tweet: 'Our earliest example of it in use comes from 1797' (KYM).
What is the difference between side eye and an eye roll?
An eye roll is an overt dismissal. Side eye is sneakier — looking sideways while keeping your head still, which is why it reads as suspicion or veiled judgment rather than open contempt.
What was the Michelle Obama side eye?
At the January 20, 2017 presidential inauguration, Melania Trump handed Michelle Obama a Tiffany's box on camera; Michelle's brief, uncertain glance toward a nearby camera was widely read as side eye and joked about on Twitter (KYM).