Meaning & use
fancy that
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Meanings
phrasefixed phraseinformalBritish
Used to express surprise, admiration, or mild disbelief at something you have just heard or noticed.
Grammar: Usually said alone as an exclamation, but can be part of a sentence: 'Fancy that!' or 'Fancy that, he actually came.'
Patterns
- fancy that
- fancy that!
He won the lottery? Fancy that!
Fancy that — I never knew she could speak Japanese.
phrasefixed phraseinformalBritishhumorous
Used to show that you find something surprising or impressive, often with a tone of irony.
Grammar: Can be used sarcastically to mean the opposite, similar to 'imagine that'.
Patterns
- fancy that
- well, fancy that
Well, fancy that! You actually remembered my birthday.
Fancy that — the bus is on time for once.
Common combinations
- fancy that
- Fancy that! I've never seen a cat do that before.
- well, fancy that
- Well, fancy that — you're a doctor now.
- fancy that!
- Fancy that! She's moving to Australia.
Synonyms and how they differ
- imagine that
- Very similar in meaning and often used in American English, but can sound more sarcastic.
- how about that
- Expresses surprise or admiration, but is more common in American English and less formal.
- well I never
- A British expression of surprise, but it is more old-fashioned and stronger than 'fancy that'.
Commonly confused: fancy that or fancy?
fancy that vs fancy
As a verb, 'fancy' means to like or want something, or to imagine; 'fancy that' is a fixed exclamation of surprise.
Practice
You hear that your quiet neighbor has just won a singing competition. You are surprised. What do you say?
Choose one answer.
The fixed idiom is 'fancy that', used to express surprise. The other options are not standard English expressions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fancy that”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.