{
  "id": 16430594,
  "title": "See you later, alligator",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/25/see-you-later-alligator",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-25T04:47:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/20261025/see-you-later-alligator"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "When I was younger, children and young adults in the United States frequently bid farewell with the expression, “See you later, alligator.” The person responding would typically say, “In a while, crocodile.” The terms for the fearsome reptiles from folklore and wild animal exhibitions did not hold any hidden meaning. However, a cultural difference surfaced recently during a church fellowship meal. I greeted a young multicultural, English-fluent child with the phrase. A Korean parishioner nearby expressed concern that the child might be frightened, or the parents might be offended. This prompted a learning experience for all involved from various cultural backgrounds. The phrase is merely rhyming slang with no connection to reptiles. While playful greetings, sayings, and wordplays exist in numerous cultures and languages, finding equivalents or parallels can be challenging. In Korea, there is no comparable expression to “see you later, alligator.”",
  "summary": "When I was younger, kids and young people in the USA often said good-bye with the phrase, “See you later, alligator.” The other person would reply, “In a while (or after a while), crocodile.” There was no meaning implied using the terms for the oft scary reptiles of folktales (such as Peter Pan) and wild animal shows. Cultural differences emerged just the other day after a church fellowship meal,…",
  "key_points": [
    "\"See you later, alligator\" is a playful American farewell phrase",
    "Response \"In a while, crocodile\" was not meant to reference reptiles",
    "Korean parishioner expressed concern about cultural sensitivity"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The absence of direct linguistic parallels in Korean cultures turns simple American rhyming slang into a potential source of social misunderstanding during multicultural interactions.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}