I don't mean the jokes that circulate like if you ask "can I go out for a beer instead of dinner with your mother" and she says FINE but is actually upset and doesn't want you to do that.
I mean something different. I have a thread that started getting out of hand about some other issues but I want some input on this specific thing.
This link humorously covers it:
What people really mean when they say they are “FINE”
For example, in my mind, if I ask how dinner was, and you say "good" then, well, it was a very above average, enjoyable experience.
If, on the other hand, you say "fine" it means it was run of the mill, acceptable, not bad but not good enough to call "good".
My quesiton on the Adult Sexuality forum was about my wife and my sex life and one of the things I was concerned was her satisfaction. If I ask her "how was it" she never says anything but "oh, it was fine honey" or something involving the word "fine."
Never "great" or "good" or whatever, just "fine".
To me, that sounds like room for improvement, but I am not going to "nag" her about it. However, if there IS legitimately room for improvement, I want to know.
To avoid a long, drawn out thread, I only really want answers to the question about your experiences about using the word "fine" in this context.
Another part of the question is could the meaning be different depending on personality? I'm very expressive, enthusiastic, a little manic, so if something is good I say good, or great, or excellent. If I say "fine" I literally mean "just OK" or "gets the job done" or "not bad but nothing to write home about".
My wife, however, is much more low-key and mild-mannered. She rarely gets very excited or very upset.
