The most frustrating thing about being ignored over text is that you can’t know why.
It’s just as likely that someone is busy or preoccupied (or just doesn’t have their phone on them) than that they are being rude. If you find yourself getting annoyed because you’ve messaged someone and haven’t heard back, you should give them the benefit of the doubt…at least initially.
However, after a reasonable amount of time has passed, you might want to prompt a response by sending a follow-up text.
Depending on the situation, you may want to take a humorous approach. If you’re really frustrated, you can opt for a message with a more serious tone. Whatever the situation, you’re bound to find a text that fits your mood in this extensive list of things to send when someone doesn’t respond.
37 ingenious texts to send when someone doesn’t reply
- Hellooo?
- ???
- So, what do you think?
- Can you let me know, please?
- Is everything okay? I’m just wondering why you aren’t responding.
- I hope you’re doing alright. If you’re feeling low again, let me know if I can do anything.
- Give me a call when you can.
- Hey, is there a reason you haven’t gotten back to me?
- If I’ve said something to hurt or offend you, I’m really sorry. Could we talk it through?
- Are you mad at me?
- You better be doing something really important right now…
- Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Girl reluctantly agrees to go out with boy. Girl texts boy. Boy ignores girl. Girl gets mad. Do you want me to continue…?
- Well, I guess I’ll just choose by myself then.
- Is your phone broken or something?
- I love being ignored, so this is super fun!
- Just sitting around waiting for you to realize that you’re going to lose me.
- Are you shy or something?
- Cat got your tongue?
- How far down the list of your priorities do I rank?
- Did you understand the question?
- So should I archive this conversation, or were you planning to get back to me at some point?
- I see you…
- What on the internet could possibly be so interesting that it’s distracting you from me?
- You know I can see that you’re adding to your stories, right?!
- And as she once again waited for him to respond, she began to wonder what her life might have looked like if she had never walked into that bar in Boston last June…
- I think your WhatsApp must not be working properly…it keeps saying you’re “online,” but I know that if you were you would have responded to my message.
- What are all these important messages you’re sending that prevent you from responding to me?
- If you’re going to leave me on text message “hold,” you could have at least arranged some elevator music.
- *Uh, uh, uh, uh, staying alive, staying alive* Oh, don’t mind me, I was just giving this conversation CPR.
- Earth to Janine, Earth to Janine, do you copy?
- There’s playing hard to get, and then there’s this…
- I will accept the following as reasons why you aren’t responding: 1. Saving kittens 2. Kidnapped by dangerous criminal.
- What could possibly be more important than responding to your wonderful, beautiful, ever-patient girlfriend?
- Are you alive?
- What did you do, text me and then immediately throw your phone into the sea?
- You’re lucky that I love you…it’s making me marginally less mad at you for not responding.
- So…are you ever going to respond? Asking for a friend.
Brilliant things to say when someone sees your message but doesn’t reply
Over the last few years, we’ve developed an extensive set of unwritten rules around read receipts. Who knew that tiny tick marks could mean so much?
What does it mean when someone has received your message but hasn’t read it? What does it mean if they have received it and haven’t read it but have been online since you sent it?
And, to add even more confusion to the mix, what does it mean if someone receives and reads your message but doesn’t respond?
You’ll surely feel some type of way about being “left unread” and might feel even worse about having your message read and not responded to.
If someone has received and seen your message but still isn’t getting back to you, you’ll probably be tempted to say something. Not sure what the best way to make someone reply is? Here are a few suggestions.
1. Hellooo?
This message mimics the sound you might make if you were on the phone and the line cut out. You’re basically saying, “Are you still there?”
Few notifications are more attention-grabbing than a text that just says, “Hellooo?”
So, if you’re trying to get someone to finally respond to a “What’s up?” message you sent earlier in the week, a simple “Hellooo?” will likely get a reaction.
2. ???
This is the OG response to being ignored. If you ask a question and don’t get an answer, you might feel frustrated.
I mean, come on, how hard is it to think of ways to respond to “How’s your day?”
When you send “???” as a follow-up message to a text that hasn’t gotten a response, you’re letting the person who has been ignoring you know that you won’t let the conversation die out quietly.
3. So, what do you think?
If the last message you sent was a question, you can prompt the person ghosting you to answer it by asking, “So, what do you think?”
This is a great way to ask your question again without sounding like a broken record. Because text and chat messages leave a trail, you won’t want to just send the exact same message again.
To make it crystal clear what you mean, you can “reply” to your own message with this question. This will show the person you’re writing to that you’re asking them what their answer is to the last question you asked.
4. Can you let me know, please?
Are you waiting for someone to respond before finalizing plans?
You might be looking to book a table at a restaurant to celebrate a friend’s birthday and need to know who is coming. Or, you might be trying to decide what to write on a donation brick that your family is paying for and are waiting for everyone’s input.
Whatever you’re organizing, you can follow up your initial text with, “Can you let me know, please?”
Ultimately, all you’re asking is for the person you’ve messaged to show some basic respect and answer your question.
5. Is everything okay? I’m just wondering why you aren’t responding.
If you’re more worried than irritated, this is a good message to send someone who isn’t replying to you.
We never know what the people around us are dealing with behind closed doors.
If you suspect that someone might not be on their phone because they are struggling with something, this is a compassionate way to check in.
6. I hope you’re doing alright. If you’re feeling low again, let me know if I can do anything.
Sometimes, what it takes to cheer someone up over text is just a sign that there are people out there who care about them.
Instead of getting defensive and feeling hurt that a friend or family member hasn’t answered your message, take a moment to think about why this might be.
If you know that the person in question suffers with their mental health, you can do your part to show them how much you care about them.
7. Give me a call when you can.
When you’re reaching out to someone that you don’t have a close relationship with, they may not respond immediately. You aren’t a normal part of their day-to-day life, so they may be waiting to get back to you until they have time to do non-essential things.
On the one hand, that seems fair. On the other…I mean, come on, everyone knows how to respond when someone says, “Hi” right?
So, if someone doesn’t respond to a simple message of greeting and you need to talk to them, you can ask them to give you a call. This will show them that you actually do need to get in touch and encourage them to prioritize your conversation.
8. Hey, is there a reason you haven’t gotten back to me?
This is a neutral, non-judgmental way to ask why you haven’t received a message back from someone.
If it is out of character for someone to avoid messages or not respond, they might be dealing with something very difficult.
For example, they might have suffered a death in the family. If the person who has gone quiet is grieving someone, you’ll want to keep showing up for them during this difficult time. Read through these appropriate things to say to someone who has lost a loved one and send them a card.
9. If I’ve said something to hurt or offend you, I’m really sorry. Could we talk it through?
If you suspect that the reason you aren’t getting an answer from someone is because they’re hurt, you’ll want to be tactful. The worst thing you could do right now is accuse them of being oversensitive or saying anything that might offend them further.
Start off by offering a conditional apology and then ask whether you could talk through the problem.
10. Are you mad at me?
If you suspect you’re going to have to do some groveling to get out of the doghouse with a partner because they’re ignoring you, start by checking whether they’re mad at you.
If they are, you can take your campaign to get back in their good books offline. They’ll be happier to see real effort in the real world than see you wage a personal PR campaign in their text inbox.
Instead of arguing your case in a chat, buy them flowers or leave notes around the house by choosing awesome things on a whiteboard about how much you love them.
Hilarious sarcastic replies to send when someone ignores you
Usually, the person we’re waiting to hear from will get back to us in their own time. That’s why it’s best not to jump the gun and send an angry message only to end up looking needy.
However, once enough time has passed and it has become clear that the person you’re trying to talk to is full-on giving you the cold shoulder, you can bring out your inner snarky side.
I mean, if they aren’t going to entertain you, someone has to, right? And who better than yourself?
These sarcastic responses to someone ignoring you vary from light-hearted to bitter, so proceed with caution if you decide to send one that is on the sharper end.
11. You better be doing something really important right now…
The implication is of course that unless the person is doing something really important, they have no reason not to respond to you.
You can change the tone of this message by adding an emoji to the end of it. If you’re feeling really frustrated, you can opt for a pouting cat emoji (😾) or even an angry face emoji (😠).
If you want to give this message a humorous undertone, opt for an upside-down smiley emoji (🙃).
12. Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love with girl. Girl reluctantly agrees to go out with boy. Girl texts boy. Boy ignores girl. Girl gets mad. Do you want me to continue…?
This is a funny, snarky message. Basically, you’re warning the guy who’s ignoring you that he shouldn’t push you.
I mean, come on. Whether you’re dating or are in a serious relationship, you owe it to the other person to respond to their messages within a reasonable amount of time.
13. Well, I guess I’ll just choose by myself then.
Imagine you’ve asked a question about what someone wants to do for your shared plans. For example, you’ve asked what they want to have for dinner or what movie you should buy tickets for. They haven’t responded yet and time is ticking.
If you want to make the point that you’re frustrated and don’t mind coming across a little passive aggressive, this is a good text to send.
14. Is your phone broken or something?
This might be the ultimate sarcastic message to send when someone is ignoring your texts.
It’s both subtle and brutal. What’s behind the question is this: If you’re phone isn’t broken, why on earth aren’t you answering me?
15. I love being ignored, so this is super fun!
Okay, hold up. Actually, this might be the ultimate sarcastic thing to write when someone doesn’t respond to your message.
Sarcasm is an art form and with this message, you’re basically the Picasso of snarky texts.
16. Just sitting around waiting for you to realize that you’re going to lose me.
Some girls are showered in affectionate texts from their partners all day long. How good does that sound? I mean, no one gets tired of thinking of ways to respond to “You are beautiful.”
If, on the other hand, you’re sitting around waiting for your phone to buzz because the person you are dating has gone silent, this is a perfect text to send.
Establishing early on that you aren’t here for being treated like you aren’t a priority will ensure that you don’t end up in a relationship that doesn’t meet your needs.
17. Are you shy or something?
Asking whether someone is shy is a great way to provoke a response.
Either they have to admit to being shy, which is a little bit silly, or they have to provide another good reason for why they aren’t getting back to you.
18. Cat got your tongue?
If you’ve already wasted enough original words on someone, you can follow-up your previous texts with a well-worn idiom.
Asking whether the cat has got someone’s tongue is a great way of questioning why they aren’t speaking. Plus, it doesn’t require you to reveal anything about yourself.
Most follow-up texts to an unanswered text involve showing the person how you feel about their lack of response to your earlier message.
Saying, “Cat got your tongue?” allows you to prompt a response without showing your hand. You could be saying this from a place of rage or from a place of good humor.
The person you’re writing to will probably want to know, which will cause them to reply quickly.
19. How far down the list of your priorities do I rank?
What makes this sarcastic reply so biting is that it is sort of a joke and sort of not a joke.
After all, if you were at the top of their list, your phone would have dinged long ago…
20. Did you understand the question?
What is plausible deniability? It’s the ability to deny knowledge of (or responsibility for) something.
To understand this message, all you need to know is that this text gives you plausible deniability because you can always say you were being serious.
No one can prove you were being sarcastic to make a point. You can say that you were genuinely wondering whether the reason someone didn’t respond is because they didn’t comprehend the question.
21. So should I archive this conversation, or were you planning to get back to me at some point?
Oof. Bringing out the archive ultimatum should never be done lightly. Archiving a conversation is the equivalent of telling someone that you don’t want to see them anymore.
In the era of digital dating and getting to know each other through text exchanges, telling someone you’re removing the space in which you two talk to each other from your life is a big deal.
Only say this if you’re serious and know you won’t regret it.
Clever texts to send when someone is online but doesn’t reply to a message
We’ve all sent someone a text and waited around for a response only to see the person upload a story or photo on social media. You might be thinking, “Like…you know I can see that, right?”
Alternatively, you might be sitting on a messaging app and seeing that little “online” or “active” text pop up repeatedly…and still your phone stays silent.
When someone is online and is neglecting to answer your message, once enough time has passed, you’ll want to put your foot down. Use one of these clever texts to induce a reaction.
After all, often all it takes to get someone’s attention is a notification displaying a smart message.
22. I see you…
Pointing out that you can see someone is online is a good way to make them feel obligated to respond.
That said, you don’t want them to think that you spend all your time sitting around looking at their chat profile.
All things considered, it might be best to save this one for the people you’re really close to, such as a partner or best friend.
23. What on the internet could possibly be so interesting that it’s distracting you from me?
Confidence is a must when confronting someone about not responding. And this is certainly a confident message.
Again, keep this way of prompting a response for people in your inner, inner circle. If you sent this message to someone you were only just getting to know, they might think you were coming on a bit strong.
24. You know I can see that you’re adding to your stories, right?!
The longer and more established your relationship with someone is, the more informal you can be with them.
I mean, if you have the kind of relationship where you’ve invested hours thinking up things to write in a scrapbook for a best friend, you’re pretty much entitled to say whatever over text.
25. And as she once again waited for him to respond, she began to wonder what her life might have looked like if she had never walked into that bar in Boston last June…
Asking someone to figure out how to respond to “What’s good?” isn’t that big of an ask, even if they have a full schedule.
If you’re wondering what your life might be like if you weren’t with such a non-committal and unreliable partner, you can show them how you’re feeling with this clever message.
They’ll be hankering to win back your favor in no time.
26. I think your WhatsApp must not be working properly…it keeps saying you’re “online,” but I know that if you were you would have responded to my message.
To everyone out there using WhatsApp, this one is for you!
That pesky, little “online” text can really drive you nuts when someone is point-blank refusing to respond. Why is it so hard to look away from it?
This clever message shows that even though you’re annoyed at being ignored, you haven’t lost your sense of humor.
27. What are all these important messages you’re sending that prevent you from responding to me?
If someone is active on a messaging or social media platform, they’re obviously doing something.
And if that thing is not responding to you, you can ask them what it is.
This is an ideal message to send to a partner who seems to have forgotten what it means to be in a committed relationship.
Funny things to say when someone doesn’t text back
If you know how to make light of any situation and pride yourself on your funny bone, these sample messages are for you.
You can distract yourself from the annoyance you feel at having to wait around for an answer by crafting a clever text.
28. If you’re going to leave me on text message “hold,” you could have at least arranged some elevator music.
Being on hold is a universally hated experience.
It generally goes something like this: You can’t hang up the phone or you’ll lose your spot in the call line…and you’ve already invested over fifteen minutes of your life! On the other hand, you’re not sure you can listen to the same jingle on repeat for a single second more…
Joking about being on text message “hold” will certainly get across the frustration you’re feeling about being ignored.
29. *Uh, uh, uh, uh, staying alive, staying alive* Oh, don’t mind me, I was just giving this conversation CPR.
Anyone who has taken a First Aid course knows that the best way to check you are giving CPR correctly is to pump your hands down in time to the infamous tune “Staying Alive” by the Bee Gees.
Joking that your conversation needs resuscitation is a funny to ask someone to stop ignoring you.
30. Earth to Janine, Earth to Janine, do you copy?
When someone is staring off into the distance and is clearly in another world, saying, “Earth to [their name]” is a funny way to make the point that they look spaced out.
Not responding is the text-message version of being spaced out.
Mimicking the way land-based space centers get in contact with their colleagues in actual space is a good way to try to get someone to reply over text.
31. There’s playing hard to get, and then there’s this…
People who play hard to get generally adopt the philosophy, “treat ‘em mean, keep ‘em keen.”
The idea is that if you have given someone everything that they want from you, they’ll be fully satisfied and won’t be as interested in you anymore.
If you want to joke that someone being completely unresponsive might be their idea of playing hard to get, this a great way to go about it.
32. I will accept the following as reasons why you aren’t responding: 1. Saving kittens 2. Kidnapped by dangerous criminal.
Tell someone you won’t accept that they aren’t responding unless they have a very good reason…but make it funny.
Feel free to supplement this sample text with your own funny examples of legitimate reasons why someone might not have gotten back to you.
33. What could possibly be more important than responding to your wonderful, beautiful, ever-patient girlfriend?
If you send this to your boyfriend, he’ll know he has to respond immediately or risk potential repercussions.
34. Are you alive?
This is a perfect thing to send when you start to suspect that someone is ghosting you.
Ghosting, or disappearing from someone’s life without explanation, is pretty mean.
Some people think it can sometimes be kinder to go quiet rather than spell out the reasons why you don’t want anything to do with someone anymore, but…well, they’re wrong.
At the end of the day, if you’ve developed any kind of relationship with someone, it’s a bit cowardly to suddenly stop talking to them.
Asking if someone is alive because they aren’t texting you back is a good way to drive home how their actions are affecting you.
35. What did you do, text me and then immediately throw your phone into the sea?
Feel free to supplement this sample message with any kind of laughing or crying emoji, depending on the mood you are in when you send it.
How frustrating is it when someone asks you a question, you respond, and then they never get back to you.
It makes you think, “Why bother writing to me if you weren’t even going to check my response?”
This text suggests that you think them hurling their phone into deep blue water is as likely an explanation as any for them not responding…that’s how unreasonable they’re being.
36. You’re lucky that I love you…it’s making me marginally less mad at you for not responding.
If a partner or person you’re dating isn’t responding to you, but you suspect they have an at least semi-valid reason for it, you can send this text.
They’ll get that while you aren’t angry, you aren’t happy either. Hopefully, they’ll get in touch quickly to reassure you that they love you too.
After all, if they ever want to be sitting beside you writing out responses to baby shower thank you cards, they’d better pull it together quick.
37. So…are you ever going to respond? Asking for a friend.
The classic, “asking for a friend” line gets pulled out whenever we’re pretending not to care about the answer to a question.
It’s more than obvious that you are not asking for a friend, which is what makes this message funny.