About

Mixed-Up Speech Bubbles or Thought and Speech Bubbles Mixed Up refer to a series of memes and webcomics in which a character is shown with both a speech bubble and a thought bubble over their head while talking with someone, the person they're talking to saying, "I think your thought and speech bubbles are mixed up," the joke being that they accidentally said something revealing that they meant to keep to themselves. The meme trend started spreading online as early as September 2020 and became increasingly popularized over the following years, including as a redraw template, often focusing on anime and manga characters. The meme gained notable virality on X / Twitter in August 2025.

Origin

On September 20th, 2020, X^[1] user @h_artistlife posted a piece of Bleach fan art in which the character Rukia Kuchiki asks Ichigo Kurosaki, "How on earth are you ever going to live without me?" Ichigo thinks, "Very easily, thank you very much," and says, "Why the hell would I stay alive without you?" Rukia responds, "Moron, you mixed up your speech bubbles." The post gained over 400 likes in five years and is the earliest known example of the meme, although it may not be the original based on the caption, which reads, "The 'you switched speech bubbles' meme is my fave krtwt meme."

Spread

The meme continued to spread over the following years as different social media users incorporated the concept into new variations with other characters from pop culture.

On August 1st, 2023, X^[2] user @Melty_Lands posted a Project Sekai version of the meme that gained over 4,200 likes in two years.

On November 30th, 2024, X^[3] user @kuruka_shi posted a version of the meme that references the video game Undertale, garnering roughly 1,000 likes in a year.

On May 31st, 2025, Redditor u/Amnicron posted a wholesome version of the meme to the /r/Kirby^[4] subreddit in which Ribbon accidentally calls Kirby "extra cute today," garnering over 2,700 upvotes in three months.

On August 18th, X^[5] user @Wrdr67684 posted a version of the meme based on the webseries The Amazing Digital Circus that gained over 45,000 likes in a week.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References