[QLP]

Okay, this will probably be a very short discussion, but I have no idea where else to post this question so popped it in here.

Can one of you lovely people across the pond please explain to a confused Brit what the expression 'go figure' actually means?

Is it meant as a bit of an insult or just a quick way of saying go think about it or something?

This might make the discussion a bit longer, but thinking about things a bit more... Sometimes people take offence at advice given and I wonder if it might be a cultural/language thing on occasion. I have to remind myself sometimes that what can feel very slightly aggressive to me as a Brit is just frankness to my US friends. Do we Brits come across as a bit Woolly or such like, at times, as we have a tendency to word things slightly differently?

[ballengerb1]

Not an insult like "ya think" Go figure means this doesn't make any sense so I'll have to think about it some more. "do ya think" means you just said something so obvious it sounded stupid.

[JudyKayTee]

I've seen "go figure" used both as a semi-insult (complete with shoulder shrug) or a comment.

I use it (and I can't speak for all people on this side of the pond) as a "This doesn't make sense to me" kind of comment or "Why does he/she do this?" kind of comment. I think it can be sarcastic but not insulting - ?

Let me see an example - she was never home and her kids ran the streets and now they've been arrested. Go figure.

It's a sarcastic comment.

[ebaines]

"Go figure" implies that there's something a bit illogical or emotional about the situation. Example: "He couldn't afford to buy the car he wanted, so he bought a big screen TV instead. Go figure." Sometimes it's used sarcastically when talking about something that's pretty obvious, like "The other driver cut him off and so called him a nasty name - go figure."

[Aurora_Bell]

I've also heard it used in a sentence to imply irony. Ex "He was afraid to fly, so he drove everywhere and ended up dying in a car crash---go figure".

Wow, that was a really morbin example... heh. It was all I could think of.