one of those things

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (Australian):

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Noun

one of those things (plural not attested)

1. (idiomatic, often preceded by just) An unfortunate, but unavoidable, event.

   It was just one of those things: I spent an hour in traffic and then found that the shop was closed.

2. (idiomatic, often preceded by just) A strange or surprising event for which an explanation is unavailable or not worth pursuing.
   • 1951, John Wyndham, The Day of the Triffids, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, published 1954, page 25:

     My father was one of those persons who could add a column of figures - even of the ridiculous coinage then in use locally - with a flick of the eye, so that it was natural for him to have in mind that I should become an accountant. As a result, my inability to make any column of figures reach the same total twice caused me to be something of a mystery as well as a disappointment to him. Still, there it was: just one of those things.

   • 1959, Isaac Asimov, Words of Science, page 227:

     The moral to this story is that the good research scientist pays strict attention to any peculiar event and does not shrug off a mystery as just "one of those things."

Translations

unfortunate but unavoidable event

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 不可避免的事 (bùkěbìmiǎn de shì)

• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: huonoa tuuria
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• Russian: please add this translation if you can