Whatever tickles your pickle (2024)

A coworker said this phrase to a doctor in our pod and it sounded inappropriate for the work environment.
However she contends this urban saying means the same as "whatever floats your boat".

I have my doubts. To me, whatever tickles your pickle is the same as saying "whatever melts your butter" while one is directed to males and the other is directed to women, both have the same sexual connotation that can be offensive to the opposite sex in a professional work environment.

Whatever floats your boat is the more politically correct way of saying this if you must say anything. Still not the type of language I would prefer to use in the workplace.

Am I wrong?

ain'ttranslationfun? said:

I think "Whatever floats your boat." would be OK in most circumstances. (Besides, I think Seattle is pretty laid-back, isn't it?)

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Yes, I agree, however you do sense the sexual connotation of the expression "whatever tickles your pickle" and thus you'd prefer not to use it in a professional working environment. To me, this makes them substantially different.

ain'ttranslationfun? said:

Yes, because you wouldn't be likely to say "Whatever tickles your pickle/melts your butter." to a woman or a man, respectively.

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See Also

Understanding "tickle someone's pickle" Idiom: Meaning, Origins & Usage - CrossIdiomas.comWhat is the meaning of "Whatever tickles your hangover pickle"? - Question about English (US)

I agree; interesting enough, the coworker who said this was a female MA talking to a female doctor. I suppose it wouldn't be so inappropriate for women to speak male jargon amongst each other except for when there is a male present in the room. It is normally forbidden for men in Seattle to disrespect females in the same manner if the tables were turned. I needed to confirm if there was a sexual connotation in this expression and you have answered my question. Thank you aint'ttranslationfun.

I've never heard the expression (I live under a rock and only come out occasionally ) but I notice that The Urban Dictionary doesn't give it a sexual connotation (if there is a sexual connotation to be had, The Urban Dictionary will generally have it).

Urban Dictionary: whatever tickles your pickle
whatever you want!

"Whatever floats your boat" is okay; it's informal, but so are many work environments. It would, of course, be addressed to co-workers, not to the company president.

I agree that the other two expressions are inappropriate (just about anywhere, in my opinion).

I live under roughly the same rock as The Ripper: I've never heard

expression in the UK (pickle, butter). Neither sounds sexually suggestive to me ~ they just sound fanciful/cute/folksy

P.S. When I hear pickle I automatically think of this stuff

rather than these things

which we call gherkins. So that explains that one

I haven't heard the expression 'whatever melts your butter', either; it sounds a bit silly to me. Australians also call the preserved cucumber a gherkin like ewie. 'Whatever tickles your pickle' seems to be an intentional departure from 'whatever tickles your fancy' because 'pickle' rhymes with 'tickle', and I presume it can only have a sexual innuendo if directed towards a male.

Pickle - definition of pickle by The Free Dictionary
1. (Cookery) (often plural) vegetables, such as cauliflowers, onions, etc, preserved in vinegar, brine, etc
2. (Cookery) any food preserved in this way
3. (Cookery) a liquid or marinade, such as spiced vinegar, for preserving vegetables, meat, fish, etc
4. (Cookery) chiefly US and Canadian a cucumber that has been preserved and flavoured in a pickling solution, such as brine or vinegar

You little ripper! said:

I presume it can

only

have a sexual innuendo if directed towards a

male

.

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Sorry, I don't get this part. Why does it have a sexual connection in the first place and why only when said to men? Is all that because of "tickle"?

Thanks.

Englishmypassion said:

Sorry, I don't get this part. Why does it have a sexual connection in the first place and why only when said to men? Is all that because of "tickle"?

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No, it's the "pickle." See the second picture in post #9.

Edinburgher said:

Okay, that's that one sorted out. Now can someone explain the alleged putative sexual connotation of melting butter, please?

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It makes me wet.

You little ripper! said:

I've never heard the expression (I live under a rock and only come out occasionally ) but I notice that The Urban Dictionary doesn't give it a sexual connotation (if there is a sexual connotation to be had, The Urban Dictionary will generally have it).

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Funnily enough, it gives a sexual connotation to "Whatever floats your boat" instead!

I think I might not be kinky enough to sexualize a boat.

Tickle your pickle is used widely in the UK by people under 40, it came into fashion in the late nineties, introduced into popular culture in a film, although I forget which one, might be Human Traffic.

It does not carry a sexual connotation, you bunch of prudes. It's humourous because of the rhyme. It means "Whatever makes you happy".

Who, in their right mind, is going to use the word pickle in a come-on?

Srlsy.