25 of the Most Iconic TV Catchphrases
Catchphrases such as “D’oh” and “Danger, Will Robinson” immediately remind us of their respective TV shows — even if you never watched a single episode of The Simpsons or Lost in Space.
Not only have certain TV catchphrases become a part of pop culture and endured sometimes decades after the show’s initial run, but hearing one again can immediately spark nostalgic memories of what you were doing at the time in your life when you first heard it.
Although there are many more memorable catchphrases since the dawn of scripted television, the following keep popping up in pop culture references and have become part of our collective consciousness.
1. “We were on a break!”
“We were on a break!” is what Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) says on Friends to Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) as a defense to sleeping with other women.
The catchphrase originated on season 3 episode 15 when Ross and Rachel decide to pump the brakes on their relationship. After that, “We were on a break” became a running gag on the series that came up whenever there was the slightest hint of tension between Ross and Rachel. The catchphrase made its final appearance on the two-part finale titled “The Last One.”
2. “No soup for you!”
On season seven episode six of Seinfeld, the gang and other New Yorkers line up down the block for a food-stand owner’s soup. The problem is that if the owner doesn’t like your ordering etiquette, he screams, “No soup for you!”
According to IMDb, the character is based on Al Yeganeh, the real-life owner of Soup Kitchen International in Manhattan. After the Seinfeld episode aired, the cast went to the restaurant and Yeganeh yelled at them for ruining his reputation. Jerry Seinfeld offered an apology, to which Yeganeh purportedly replied, “No soup for you!”
3. “Danger, Will Robinson!”
The sci-fi TV series Lost in Space follows the Robinson family of space colonists after the ship becomes — you guessed it — lost in space en route to its destination. The series that ran from 1965 to 1968 on CBS spawned a 1998 big-screen movie and a Netflix series of the same name.
One of the most beloved characters on Lost in Space is the ship’s wisecracking robot, imaginatively named “Robot.” The robot developed a close relationship with the youngest Robinson, Will (Bill Mumy). If Robot sensed an immediate threat to Will’s safety, he was quick to wave his arms and shout, “Danger, Will Robinson!”
The movie and Netflix remakes also recycled the iconic catchphrase.
4. “Yada, yada, yada.”
Seinfeld cocreator Jerry Seinfeld plays a fictionalized version of himself on the long-running sitcom. Some have described the series as a “show about nothing” with the characters focusing on minutiae of everyday life.
On “The Yada Yada” episode from season eight, Marcy (Suzanne Cryer) repeatedly uses the phrase “yada, yada, yada” to gloss over uncomfortable details that she doesn’t want to discuss when telling a story.
How many times in your life have you uttered the handy phrase or heard someone use it?
5. “Did I do that?”
On the 1990s sitcom Family Matters, Jaleel White plays Steve Urkel — the nerdy neighbor of the Winslow family.
White was 12 when cast as Urkel and 21 when the show ended. That is nine years of the annoying “Did I do that?” catchphrase, which became the trademark of the intrusive character. This YouTube compilation of every instance of “Did I do that?” on Family Matters — each instance followed by canned laughter — will test the sanity of even the most agreeable fan of American sitcoms.
6. “D’oh!”
The animated series The Simpsons began its life as a segment on The Tracey Ullman Show before getting its own half-hour show on Fox. The antics of the Simpsons family and the quirky residents of Springfield have tickled audiences for decades.
Homer Simpson often blurts the exclamation “D’oh!” when he’s surprised or annoyed. Although there is no official tally, fans have heard the catchphrase hundreds of times over the show’s 36 seasons. Now “D’oh!” has become a popular exclamation used in other movies and TV shows as well as in everyday life.
7. “How you doin’?”
The sitcom Friends ran from 1994 to 2004 and gave several generations unrealistic expectations about what living in Manhattan might look like during your 20s and 30s. Today, Friends is one of the most-streamed series on Netflix.
Joey Tribbiani, played by Matt LeBlanc, often uses the greeting “How you doin’?” as a flirtatious tactic. There is even an eight-minute video on YouTube of Joey’s best “How you doin’?” moments.
8. “If it weren’t for you meddling kids!”
Villains on various incarnations of Scooby-Doo have had something to say about those “meddling kids” since the early 1970s on Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! The original phrase was “I’d have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for these blasted kids and their dog!”
Season two of the original animated series is when the term “meddling kids” made its debut, and some variation of that phrase has appeared in every TV series and movie since then — even the live-action movies.
9. “What’s up, doc?”
The 1940 animated short A Wild Hare marks the debut appearance of Bugs Bunny and the first time he uttered his famous catchphrase: “What’s up, doc?” The bunny with an inexplicable Brooklyn accent often chomps on a carrot before and after dropping the phrase.
Audiences couldn’t get enough of the wisecracking rabbit with the curious catchphrase, and the line “What’s up, doc” appeared in every Bugs Bunny cartoon and movie since A Wild Hare. Calling someone “doc” in the 1940s is the equivalent of using the word “dude” today.
10. “Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!”
Trey Parker and Matt Stone created the animated series South Park about a group of grade school friends in the titular fictional Colorado town. The controversial show that unapologetically skewers sacred cows and is unafraid to tackle hot-button issues live-action series wouldn’t dare touch debuted in 1997 and continues to this day.
One of the most popular recurring catchphrases and gags on South Park — at least during the early seasons — was for Kenny to get graphically killed, prompting a character to shout, “Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!”
Of course, Kenny always returns in the next episode with little acknowledgement of his previous “death.”
11. “Cut it out.”
On Full House, Joey Gladstone (Dave Coulier) works as a stand-up comedian and has a catchphrase that always gets a (canned) laugh: “Cut it out.”
In an interview with Today, Coulier admits to stealing the catchphrase from his friend Mark Cendrowski, who later worked as a director on The Big Bang Theory. Apparently Cendrowski created this “Mark Suave” persona for his stand-up act, which involved him unbuttoning his shirt and looking at a lady in the front row before saying, “Cut it out.”
Coulier said about the catchphrase, “I’m gonna use it wherever I can.”
12. “Yabba dabba doo!”
Even if you’ve never watched a single episode of The Flintstones, you’ve no doubt heard the catchphrase “yabba dabba doo.” Fred Flintstone’s cheery exclamation is what the character says instead of a simple “yahoo!”
Alan Reed, who voiced Fred from 1960 to 1977, reportedly said that the inspiration for “yabba dabba doo” came from his mother and midcentury Brylcreem commercials that featured the line “A little dab will do ya.” When the script called for a “yahoo,” Reed ad-libbed “yabba dabba doo” and created a signature catchphrase for The Flintstones that even got added to the show’s theme song.
13. “Treat yo self!”
On Parks and Recreation, Donna (Retta) and Tom (Aziz Ansari) have an annual “Treat Yo Self Day” where they spend money on themselves and get pampered.
What do they treat themselves to? According to the video clip linked above, Treat Yo Self Day involves clothes, fragrances, massages, mimosas, and fine leather goods. “It’s the best day of the year,” says Donna and Tom, who are all about living their best lives.
14. “Whatchu talkin’ ’bout, Willis?”
The sitcom Diff’rent Strokes stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as, respectively, Arnold and Willis Jackson. The two Harlem brothers are taken in by a wealthy Manhattan businessman and his daughter.
Diff’rent Strokes made a star out of Coleman, whose precocious Arnold Jackson got a lot of laughs when he said to his brother, “Whatchu talkin’ ’bout, Willis?” In an interview with Ron Jeremy after Coleman’s death, Jeremy said that Coleman got annoyed when people asked him to repeat his trademark catchphrase decades after Diff’rent Strokes went off the air.
“He didn’t want to live in the past,” said Jeremy.
15. “That’s what she said.”
The double entendre “That’s what she said” didn’t originate with Michael Scott (Steve Carell) on The Office, but most people now associate that punchline with him.
Chevy Chase first made the catchphrase popular in the United States on Saturday Night Live in the 1970s, but the origins of “That’s what she said” go back to Edwardian England in the early 1900s.
16. “Live long and prosper.”
On the season two Star Trek episode “Amok Time,” Spock (Leonard Nimoy) says the phrase “Live long and prosper” for the first time when he encounters fellow Vulcan T’Pau on-screen.
The catchphrase and the accompanying Vulcan salute associated with Spock is inspired by Nimoy’s Jewish heritage. For Star Trek fans, the well-wishing saying “Live long and prosper” is almost a blessing to which one should reply, “Peace and long life.”
17. “You got it, dude.”
On Full House, twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen took turns playing Michelle Tanner, the youngest member of the Tanner family.
When Michelle says her catchphrase “You got it, dude” and gives a forced smile and thumbs-up gesture, it comes across as something a young tot wouldn’t naturally say without being coached — at least in the earlier episodes. As the Olsen twins got older and seemed more aware that they were actors, they delivered Michelle’s annoying catchphrase more naturally.
18. “Bazinga!”
On The Big Bang Theory, Jim Parsons plays Sheldon Cooper, a theoretical physicist with a genius-level IQ who works at Caltech.
The unsociable Sheldon often says “Bazinga!” whenever he wants to rub something in someone’s face or make fun of them for saying something he deems stupid. It’s the nerd equivalent of saying “Boom!” or “What’s good?” or “Not!” It’s also equally annoying coming from an adult character with an IQ of 187.
19. “Challenge accepted.”
In the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, Neil Patrick Harris plays against type by portraying the womanizing character Barney Stinson.
Barney, who fancies himself a real player, often says some version of the catchphrase “Challenge accepted” in response to his friends making toss-away statements such as, “You’re not going to still be hitting on 22-year-olds when you’re 80.” No one says “I dare you” or issues any kind of challenge to Barney, but he accepts anyway.
20. “This is Dr. Frasier Crane. I’m listening.”
On the Cheers spin-off Frasier, Kelsey Grammer plays the titular psychiatrist who starts every call on his radio show with “This is Dr. Frasier Krane. I’m listening.” Although the phrase is a rather obvious way to start a radio call, Frasier also uses the catchphrase in other contexts for a sense of irony.
At about the 45-second mark of this trailer for season two of the Frasier revival on Paramount+, you can hear Frasier utter his famous catchphrase again as he returns to his radio roots.
21. “Troy and Abed in the morning!”
Set at a community college in Colorado, Community is a meta-humor sitcom filled with pop culture references for movie and TV fans. The show ran for six seasons between 2009 and 2015.
On Community, best friends Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) host a fake talk show for their own amusement and don’t even record it. The duo begin and conclude each talk show segment by saying in singsong unison, “Troy and Abed in the morning!”
22. “Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.”
On Friday Night Lights, Kyle Chandler plays Panthers’ football coach Eric Taylor at a high school in Dillon, Texas. The sports drama TV series scored with audiences from 2006 to 2011.
Although most recurring TV catchphrases are silly, Coach Taylor’s inspirational “Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose” was meant to uplift and encourage the Panthers. Other TV shows such as Parks and Recreation, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Mindy Project, and New Girl have borrowed the familiar phrase.
23. “Book ’em, Danno.”
On the original Hawaii Five-O police procedural that aired from 1968 to 1980, Detective Captain Stephen “Steve” McGarrett (Jack Lord) ended nearly every episode with the catchphrase “Book ’em, Danno” to indicate the episode’s case has been resolved.
On the rebooted series titled Hawaii Five-0 that replaces the letter “O” in the title with the numeral “0,” Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin) also says “Book ’em, Danno” like his predecessor, albeit sometimes sarcastically. Hawaii Five-0 aired from 2010 to 2020.
24. “Lucy, you got some ‘splainin to do!”
One of the most iconic catchphrases on American TV, “Lucy, you got some ‘splainin to do” from I Love Lucy, is not exactly what the character Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnez) said.
Whenever Lucy (Lucille Ball) got into some kind of trouble or did something to displease her husband, Ricky would say something like, “Lucy, ‘splain” or “Lucy explain” in his thick Cuban accent. American audiences, especially in the 1950s, thought any kind of foreign accent was hilarious, so the catchphrase took off.
Although today’s audiences still giggle at an exaggerated accent (e.g., Sofia Vergara on Modern Family), the vaguely threatening and borderline misogynistic “Lucy, you got some ‘splainin to do” wouldn’t fly in the 21st century.
25. “Hi-de-ho, neighbor!”
On the long-running sitcom Home Improvement, Tim Allen played the main character, Tim Taylor, and Earl Hindman played Tim’s neighbor Wilson W. Wilson Jr.
Throughout the series, viewers only saw the top of Mr. Wilson’s head as he spoke with Tim from behind a fence. Mr. Wilson would start a conversation with a cheery “Hi-de-ho, neighbor,” which became an endearing catchphrase on the fan-favorite series that ran from 1991 to 1999.
