Meaning & use
living under a rock
Last updated
Meaning
phraseidiominformalfigurative
Unaware of important or popular things that most people know about.
Grammar: Used after be or have been: 'You must be living under a rock.' Not used as a command.
Patterns
- be living under a rock
- have been living under a rock
- you must be living under a rock
You haven't heard of that band? You must be living under a rock.
She's been living under a rock — she didn't know the election was yesterday.
I'm not living under a rock; I just don't follow celebrity news.
Common combinations
- must be living under a rock
- If you don't know that song, you must be living under a rock.
- been living under a rock
- He's been living under a rock if he hasn't seen the news.
- like living under a rock
- Without social media, it feels like living under a rock.
Synonyms and how they differ
- out of touch
- Out of touch means not aware of current ideas or fashions, but it is less exaggerated and more formal than living under a rock.
- clueless
- Clueless means completely without understanding; it is more general and can be rude, while living under a rock specifically suggests missing widely known information.
Opposites
Commonly confused: living under a rock or under a rock?
living under a rock vs under a rock
Literally, under a rock means physically beneath a stone; the idiom living under a rock is figurative and means being unaware.
Practice
Choose the best completion: 'You've never heard of the internet? You ____ under a rock!'
Choose one answer.
The idiom uses the progressive form 'living' after 'must be' to describe a current state of unawareness. 'Must live' is not used in this fixed expression.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “living under a rock”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.