Meaning & use
playing gooseberry
Last updated
“playing gooseberry” is a form of “play gooseberry”.
Meaning
phraseidiominformalBritish
Being a third person who is awkwardly present while two others, usually a couple, want to be alone together.
Grammar: Verb phrase, change the verb form: I do not want to play gooseberry.
Patterns
- play gooseberry
- do not want to play gooseberry
I did not want to play gooseberry, so I left them at the cafe.
He spent the whole date playing gooseberry between his sister and her boyfriend.
Nobody enjoys playing gooseberry on a romantic walk.
Word forms
| third person singular | plays gooseberry |
|---|---|
| past tense | played gooseberry |
| -ing form | playing gooseberry |
Common combinations
- end up playing gooseberry
- I ended up playing gooseberry at their anniversary dinner.
- hate playing gooseberry
- She hates playing gooseberry on holiday with her friends.
- don't want to play gooseberry
- I don't want to play gooseberry, so you two go ahead.
- feel like playing gooseberry
- He felt like he was playing gooseberry in their conversation.
- stop playing gooseberry
- We invited a friend to stop him playing gooseberry.
Synonyms and how they differ
- third wheel
- Third wheel is the American equivalent, and refers to the same awkward extra person.
- gooseberry
- As a noun, a gooseberry is the unwanted third person himself, while 'playing gooseberry' is the action.
- odd one out
- Odd one out is not specifically about romance and simply means being different from the group.
Word family
Commonly confused: playing gooseberry or third wheel?
playing gooseberry vs third wheel
Third wheel means the same in American English, while playing gooseberry is the British phrase.
Practice
Julia hates ______ when her brother and his girlfriend go out, so she stays home.
Choose one answer.
Playing gooseberry means being the awkward extra person. Playing truant is skipping school, which does not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “playing gooseberry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.