It really doesn’t take that much to make a face :). Indeed, humans have the very useful ability to recognize patterns, but it comes with the downside that sometimes we do see the shapes of something else in totally random items.
So we’ve collected some of the best examples of inanimate objects seemingly having faces, as shared by folks online. Get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites and be sure to add your own thoughts and experiences to the comments down below.
#1 Fossil
Image source: James Harris
#2 I Bought A Bidet Attachment For The Toilet. It Didn’t Look Excited To Be Installed And Starting Its New Job
Image source: Catherine Craker
#3 My Loaf Of Bread Is Going To Give Me Nightmares
Image source: Laura Elmore Colling
Scientists call this delightful quirk pareidolia, and it simply means spotting faces where none exist. A wall socket with a startled expression. A car that looks permanently grumpy. Two buttons on a coat that seem to be gossiping. Once your brain has noticed them, there is no going back, and it is not even a little bit sorry.
So why does it happen? One popular explanation is that your brain would rather be safe than sorry. Pareidolia is technically a false positive, a bit like a smoke alarm that goes off whenever someone makes toast. For social creatures like us, spotting a friendly face quickly is far more useful than occasionally mistaking a teapot for one, so the system errs on the side of enthusiasm.
#4 Not Sure What Kind Of Animal He’s Supposed To Be
Image source: Darci Augustine
#5 The Dishwater Is Happy To See Me!
Image source: Ayy Zee
#6 Nothing To See Here, Just Your Run Of The Mill Security Guard
Image source: Rachel Panorama
The speed is the really wild part. Brain imaging studies show that objects people perceive as faces switch on the same region that handles real faces, an area called the fusiform face area. In one study that reaction showed up around 165 milliseconds after the picture appeared, which is a tiny fraction of a second. Objects that nobody saw as faces did not get the same treatment. Another finding is that the more face like an object seemed, the harder that brain region worked. So when you declare that a pepper looks delighted, your brain is genuinely rolling out the welcome mat.
#7 Unexpected Lunch Guest..
Image source: Madison Reeves Roussel
#8 Bit Creepy
Image source: Jessie Bowen
#9 A Friendly Sea Creature In The Chiltern Hills
Image source: Sally Tarbox
Humans are not the only ones who fall for it either. In a 2017 experiment, researchers showed five rhesus monkeys pairs of pictures and found that the monkeys looked longer at objects that humans see as faces. Their gaze even landed on the spots that looked like eyes and a mouth, much as it does with real faces.
#10 I See You
Image source: Irenea Brand
#11 This Is A Picture Of The Zorro/Cowboy That Lives In My Bathroom
Image source: Tim Talbert
#12 Grumpy Face
Image source: Brian Dodge
That hints that pareidolia is not a product of cartoons or modern life, but something shared across the primate family tree. It is fun to picture a monkey squinting at a coconut and feeling mildly judged. Sometimes the faces get truly enormous. In 1976, NASA’s Viking 1 orbiter photographed the Cydonia region of Mars and captured a rocky formation that appeared to be a stern face staring up at the sky.
#13 Grumpy Old Forest Man
Image source: Elissa Coambs
#14 By Far One Of The Better Popcorn Faces I Have Found!
Image source: FaceFinder76
#15 He Has All The Tenderness Of A Seasick Crocodile
Image source: Pam Fields Weier
The mission’s chief scientist brushed it off as a trick of light and shadow, but public curiosity grew so loud that a newer spacecraft was pointed at the spot in 1998. The sharper pictures revealed an ordinary hill, a lovely reminder of how a convincing face can capture the public imagination. Space has plenty of other lookalikes too, and astronomers have been naming things after familiar shapes ever since the telescope was invented.
#16 In Honor Of This Month Being Halloween Enjoy This Pickle I Pulled Out Of The Pickle Jar
Image source: Courtney Lawson
#17 My Son’s Waffle Smiled Back At Him This Morning
Image source: Anna Vercher
#18 My Car Last Night Looked Like A Character From Fnaf…
Image source: Jenia Manosky
Then there is the Moon, which has been wearing a face for as long as anyone can remember. Researchers often point to the Man in the Moon as the classic example of an illusory face, and one brain study concluded that our face detecting machinery is broadly tuned rather than fussy. In other words, it is less of a strict doorman and more of a friendly greeter who waves everybody in.
#19 “Good Morning” Doughline, Probably
Image source: Aimee LeBlanc
#20 Sweet Potato… I’m Done…
Image source: Cindy Hayflich
#21 Apparently, Hedgehogs Are Now Being Smuggled With The Coconuts!
Image source: Amy Neufeld
The good news is that none of this means anything is wrong with you. Seeing faces in things is a normal part of how people perceive the world, and it tends to pop up in the most ordinary places. Breakfast is a big one, with eggs, pancakes, and toast frequently looking back at hungry humans.
#22 My Sandwich Is Napping
Image source: Jody Ann
#23 Well, That’s A Bit Creepy!
Image source: Marissa Carson
#24 They Were All Looking At Me Edit: I Finaly Found My Wigletts, LOL While Other People Point Out The Mad Palm Tree Hidding Behind The Lightpole, Or The Skull With Itthe Skull(Tail Light)
Image source: Prissy WY
Bathrooms are another, since taps, tiles, and shower heads have a gift for looking wide eyed. Cars deserve a special mention because headlights and grilles practically come with eyes and a smile already installed, and some drivers swear their vehicle has a mood.
#25 It looks a bit evil
Image source: Donny Williamson
#26 I Was Rock Hunting And Someone Wanted To Say Hi To Me
Image source: Sparki Meredith
#27 I’m Still Gon Eat Ya
Image source: Mika Mika
All of this is also why artists enjoy playing with the idea, and pareidolia inspired illustrations show how a few well placed lines can turn an ordinary spot into a character with a personality, a story, and sometimes a hat. Nobody has to teach us how to read these little expressions either. A doorknob with a surprised mouth makes a toddler and a grandparent giggle alike, which probably explains why people love sharing them.
#28 There’s A Bear In The Wood
Image source: Christine Bellamy
#29 My Bread
Image source: Marcy Sutton
#30 Tagless Car Looked Sad
Image source: Heidy Esmurdoc
So the next time a chair looks smug or a cloud appears to be mid yawn, go ahead and say hello. You are in very good company, from curious monkeys to the scientists who spent years studying the phenomenon. Faces, it turns out, are something our brains are always eager to find, and the world is more than happy to oblige with a steady supply of accidental portraits.
#31 Saw This Skull Guy Looking Back At Me
Image source: Pete Delapuente
#32 Creeper
Image source: Janna Jule
#33 My Daughter Was Trying To Get A Picture Of Our Shrimp, Look At The Face In The Bubbles
Image source: Donna Anwar
#34 I See The Lorax What Do You See?
Image source: BeautifulLion5089
#35 Flat Top Scraper At Work…
Image source: Eddy Vachon Jr
#36 This Nightstand Is Always Happy To See Me
Image source: Kristi Hammond
#37 Froggy Friend On The Stationary Bike. LOL!
Image source: Amber Milliken Schneider
#38 Highlight Of My Day…
Image source: Moselle Dibdin
#39 Diet Coke Face!!
Image source: Maarie-France Tessier
#40 Blushed?
Image source: Aiden Reiss
#41 My Shower Has A Face…
Image source: Heather Stewart Topping
#42 This Pizza Box Is As Exhausted As I Am
Image source: Brittney Ruppel
#43 Out On A Hike. This Kitty Must Be Lost, But Content
Image source: Tennille DiMartino
#44 Its Hard To Make Dinner With My Block Of Parmesan Cheese Looking At Me Like This!
Image source: Rose Bailey
#45 Daring Me To Rip It’s Tongue Off!
Image source: Mary Lee Holbrook
#46 It’s Giving Squidward
Image source: Kristen O’Brien-Gnass
#47 Some Faces I See
Image source: Irenea Brand
#48 My Sad Banana Pepper From My Sub. I Ate Him To Put Him Out Of His Misery
Image source: AZ ZA
#49 I Wasn’t Sure About The Whole Airfryer Thing So Chose A Friendly One…
Image source: Eve McIlmoyle
#50 The Foot Of This Sea Snail In My Brother’s Fish Tank Has An ‘October’ Theme!
Image source: Simone Reynolds
#51 Phone Shock!
Image source: Kristel O’Rourke
#52 Beautiful, From Afar
Image source: Lenora Wells
#53 He‘S A Little Shocked That Some Of My Soy Sauce Overflowed Into The Other Compartment!
Image source: Amy Hahn Christensen
#54 Tour Bus, Saguenay, Canada
Image source: George Iacono
#55 I Took These Pictures Years Ago. Surprised!! And Zombie!! LOL
Image source: Stephen Harris
#56 Discovered This Little Guy At Walmart
Image source: Barbara Jolley
#57 Mickey Mouse Logo On My Toastie In Costa
Image source: Jessica Batchelor
#58 This Plate Of Food Nearly Scared Me At First
Image source: Jonathan Dogey
#59 Caught These Two Kissing
Image source: Chris Kalley
#60 This Guy Really Loves A Train Ride
Image source: Patty Martin
#61 Looks Like Jesus On Our Ceiling
Image source: Chris Hintz
#62 I Think He’s Very Upset Or Surprised!?
Image source: Kristina Hamilton
#63 The Googly Eyes On The Portable Xray Machine
Image source: Alissa Torokhov
#64 What Are You Lookin At?!?
Image source: Josh Wo
#65 Saw This Guy Looking At Me The Other Day
Image source: Karla Williams Shelley
#66 So My Friend Joanne Took Me For My Traditional Red Lobster Birthday Lunch Today! The Hostess Was Friendly! The Waiter Was Friendly! After It Was Served, I Looked Down, And Even This Little Shrimp Was Smiling At Me!
Image source: Dane Chase
#67 English Guittar With Buck Teeth
Image source: Yufeng Lin
#68 Brake Fluid Reservoir. LOL
Image source: Chad Horton
#69 Pretty Sure That’s Tinkerbell In The Sky
Image source: Kim Roberts
#70 My Backpack Was More Excited About Going To Work Than I Was…
Image source: Shante Arlyn
#71 Security Alarm In A Theme Park Restroom Looking Like Sid From Ice Age
Image source: Nikki Kleba
#72 This Soft Carrying Fatherly Smile Through That Mustache Costs More Than 10 Bucks
Image source: ჟორა კეისარი
#73 Even The Apples Are Happy The Growing Season’s Over
Image source: Shirley Charlton
#74 This Is One Angry Cake In The Oven
Image source: ÉcureuilOptimiste
#75 This Beautiful Creature On My Screen This Morning
Image source: Rebecca Gonzalez
#76 Wife And I Were Packing Up Our Booth At A Con This Last Weekend, These Eyes And Her Scar Piece Made A Face
Image source: James Moon
#77 1980 Trans Am Cup Holder!
Image source: Pete Delapuente
#78 Very Pleased Pizza Boxes And A Cheesy Cookie Monster
Image source: Danial Dempsey
#79 The Eyes Have It
Image source: Just Joy
#80 Toasted A Waffle On Top Of A Parchment Paper And This Is What I See After I Lifted It Off. I See A Sleeping Cat’s Face
Image source: Anjelica Mae Papadopoulos
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