"IMHO"

Post Reply New Topic

This stands for "In my humble opinion." This phrase sort of bothers me. Specifically the "humble" part. The way I see it, if you are really being humble, you shouldn't have to say you're being humble. What do you think?

I thought it was "honest" instead of "humble"?

I use it as "honest" if I use it. But usually I just use "IMO", because that's the same thing, IMO.

Getting bit technical here, aren't we? No one's being arrogant if they type in "IMHO," if the 'H' actually stands for "humble". It's just a saying.

IMHO, I don't think it really matters

_________________
Ten, radio presenter at http://www.ldok.net - next show Dec 18 @ 2pm UTC
Always accepting PMs
Skype - "fiftypencepiece" or "Fool13" (both are the same)

I think the point is that a genuinely humble person would never refer to him or herself as such. Humble people are so humble that they do not know that they are humble. That's the whole point. Therefore, anyone who says proudly: "I'm humble" is obviously not humble at all.

So, the word "humble" is not an adjective that can be accurately used to describe one's own self or opinion. It can only be used to describe other people or their opinions.

But then, that's all just my humble opinion.

I use "IMHO" to mean "In My Honest Opinion." Humbleness is something that doesn't need to be said or proclaimed, much like magnanimity doesn't need to be broadcasted to the world, I can agree with the OP on that (the only case in which I could ever see it being something to bring up would be to counter another's accusations to the contrary).
Edit: found artifacts of a sentence that was going to be written one way, but in the end, was written using the noun form).

IMHO it doesn't matter.

In my humble opinion it was originally meant to stand for "in my humble opinion" for the obvious reason that no one ever utters the phrase "in my honest opinion" in real conversation nor do you you ever see it print. But you do see and hear "in my humble opinion". Why make up an abreviation for a nonexistant expression?


Its a funny expression.
Its used as an apology for sounding arrogant. If youre a scientific layman and you are expressing the opinion that Einstein was a dolt and that you know better than he about the workings of the universe- you might preface it with "IMHO". ( youre saying ineffect- I know Im stepping out of my bounds but hear me anyway.)

But if you incorrectly use IMHO to mean "honest" then you would use it very differently. Perhaps as a preface to saying something unpleasant. Like a doctor telling his patient "in my honest opinion-you only have six months to live." Not the same thing at all.

DILLIGAFF?

(With apologies to all of you fig-lovers out there.)

If the person really was humble, they wouldn't be saying that.

I've always used it as "In My Honest Opinion".