One of the most awkward things that can happen to you in the modern world is sending sensitive or out-of-context information to a complete stranger. It’s very likely that you’ve accidentally texted someone who you thought was a friend or family member, only to realize that you got the wrong number.
To give you a good laugh and a big dose of secondhand embarrassment, our team at Bored Panda has collected the funniest ‘wrong number’ conversations that were so good, people just had to screenshot and share them online. Scroll down to check out these hilarious fails.
#1 I Texted The Wrong Number
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#2 Michelle Needs A Glass Of Red
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#3 This Text I Got From An Unknown Number
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To be very clear, there’s probably not a single person in human history who has avoided social awkwardness. Embarrassment, failure, and silly mistakes are all part of the human experience. You can’t avoid them (and neither can anyone else!).
However, you can prepare yourself for how you’ll react to embarrassing yourself. You can decide to face these situations with honesty and courage. How you react to awkwardness says a lot about your character and values.
#4 Please Stop Telling Me About The Note App
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#5 An Unexpected Couple Had The Wrong Number. So I Had Some Fun
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#6 Wrong Number
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Generally speaking, it’s healthiest to admit that you’ve messed up. Paradoxically, people will like you more if you admit to having made a mistake. They’ll see you as more genuine, grounded, and approachable.
On the flip side, if you try to pretend that you haven’t embarrassed yourself, you might push people away because they might see you as fake.
And, like in most situations in life, having a good sense of humor and looking for that silver lining always helps. Laughing when you fail can help you realize that your mistakes aren’t fatal, and that you’re not actually threatened.
#7 Wrong Number, Thought You All Might Get A Kick Out Of It
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#8 Rosalia Revealed That Harry Styles Tried Texting Her After She Changed Her Number, And He Ended Up Having A Whole Conversation With A Stranger
Image source: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, suefroog
#9 I Sent This To The Wrong Number And This Is The Response I Get
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PsychCentral suggests that if you embarrass yourself, you can do a few things to overcome those feelings. For one, you should try to be as kind to yourself as you can. Self-compassion is a skill you can develop like any other.
Remind yourself that your mistakes do not define you and that one event doesn’t determine your worth.
In the meantime, consider how you’d speak to a friend who embarrassed themselves. If you wouldn’t judge them, why not extend that same courtesy to yourself?
#10 The Dude Probably Gave Her The Wrong Number On Purpose
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#11 Accidentally Sent These Pics To The Wrong Number Yesterday. The Response Was Legit, Really Made Me Smile
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#12 Accidentally Told My Boss To “Come Grab My Meat” Instead Of My Wife
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Meanwhile, it’s healthier to confront what happened rather than avoid it. “When you are embarrassed, your fight-or-flight response kicks in. If you can admit when you made a mistake or correct yourself when it is a fixable situation, this can help you move on. Avoiding the situation that makes you fearful only increases the chance of embarrassment, shame, and anxiety reoccurring,” PsychCentral explains.
If you address your embarrassment as it happens, you can become more confident. It takes a lot of courage to admit that you’ve messed up.
#13 Accidentally Sent This To My Volleyball Coach. How Cooked Am I?
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#14 Got The Best Wrong Number Text Ever Yesterday
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#15 Got A Text From A Random Old Man
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If things are overwhelming for you, deep breathing can reduce your anxiety and stress, as it slows down the physical symptoms of fear, guilt, and shame.
In the meantime, embrace a growth mentality and think about the lessons that you can learn from your failure. Maybe the embarrassment you’ve experienced is something you can avoid later by being more organized, attentive, tactful, or prepared.
#16 Found This On My Little Brothers Phone
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#17 I Don’t Know If This Was A Wrong Number Or A Scam But I Think It Went Well, Hope To Hear Back From Them
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#18 Guess My Cousin Changed Her Number
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However, if you find that your daily life is plagued with feelings of embarrassment and shame, you may need to see a mental health professional. They’ll help you unpack what you’re feeling and reframe your experiences in a more positive, empowering way.
But you do have to realize that therapists can’t wave a magic wand and ‘fix’ your life. They give you fresh perspectives, but the emotional heavy lifting is left up to you.
#19 Wrong Number Texted Me, Was This The Correct Response?
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#20 I Might Have Ruined A Marriage Over A Wrong Text
I felt really bad when, 5 months later, I accidentally texted the original guy again because I forgot to remove the contact from my phone.
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#21 I’m Not Tyson. All Different People. A Few More Too And Some Calls Looking For Tyson. I Think They’re Kids
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There are moments when your mistakes or bad luck can create actual positive opportunities. For example, getting the wrong number can lead to a fun romantic encounter. But it’s up to you to be flexible and brave enough to seize those opportunities, even if they’re a bit awkward at first.
As we’ve previously covered on Bored Panda, a few years ago, actress and singer Codie Higer got a message from a complete stranger, Mike. He was given a fake number by someone he’d previously gone on a virtual date with, and texted a photo of a lemon bund cake to it.
#22 Random Number Accidentally Added Me To Work Group Chat
At first I thought it was one of those scams they send to iPhones with the junk links, but when I looked closer I realized it was just a case of the wrong number. So I decided to mess with them because why not? Ended up making my whole day and theirs.
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#23 Should I Forgive Her?
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#24 Wrong Number
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As it turns out, Mike, who was fake-numbered, had sent the photo of his cake to Codie. That accident turned out for the best. The duo, who were both in Cleveland at the time, got to talking, realized they enjoyed each other’s company, and set up a FaceTime date.
“We acknowledged how bizarre the situation was and talked about movies, books, and each other’s careers,” Codie told Elite Daily.
#25 My Wrong Number Holiday Friend
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#26 Poor Gretchen
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#27 This Is The Weirdest, And Most Violent Wrong Number Experience I’ve Ever Had
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“We have a surprising amount in common! As far as I can tell, there was chemistry—we made each other laugh a lot, which is always a great sign,” Codie shared. At the time, she and Mike texted every single day, and even made plans for a second date.
“I’m always open to possibilities so… we’ll see! I will say, it didn’t actually feel as weird as I had expected to FaceTime a total stranger. I’m used to the weirdness of first dates and this didn’t feel that different! I’m a very outgoing person and I am always curious to meet new people, so this wasn’t that foreign for me.”
#28 A Mistaken Text I Received This Morning
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#29 Wrong Number
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#30 I Honestly Crack Myself Up This Random Number Has Been Texting Me And They Have Not Figured Out That They Have The Wrong Number
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Which of these ‘wrong number’ conversations amused you the most, dear Pandas? Which ones made you cringe the hardest?
What is the funniest case of you texting a complete stranger by accident? How do you deal with socially awkward situations like these? If you feel like venting about how you’ve embarrassed yourself in the past, you can do so in the comments at the very bottom of this list.
#31 Someone Had A Bad Night Of It Nye From The Sound Of This Wrong Number
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#32 A Few Days Ago I Got, Like, Ten Missed Calls From Some Number, So I Texted Them To Ask Who It Was, And Then They Sent This Today
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#33 Got A Random Picture From An Unknown Number. So Weird That We Were Doing The Same Thing
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#34 Random Number And I Going Back And Forth Sending Each Other Different Species Of Squirrels. I’ve No Clue Who This Is Or How They Found My Number
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#35 When Your Crush Texts Your Number By Accident
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#36 Y’all This Just Happened To Me I Accidentally Texted My Tattoo Artist
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#37 I’m So Embarrassed. But This Text Made My Day. I Had Someone’s Number Saved Wrong
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#38 Last Night I Accidentally Gave A Guy At The Bar My Mom’s Number Instead Of Mine. I’m Grounding Myself
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#39 Got This One This Morning. Gotta Mess With Them A Little
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#40 Accidentally Sent This To My Family Group Chat. I Swear I’m Relatively Sane
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#41 This One Was 100% On Me. Misheard My Uncle When He Gave Me His Number
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#42 A Message From Aunt
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#43 What Did I Just Say?
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#44 Funny Wrong Number Text I Got Today. Kendall Took It With Great Stride
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#45 Was This A Phishing Text Or Did I Scar Some Lady?
I got this text from an area code I didn’t recognize and thought it’d be funny to respond. The way they typed back, I think it was a real person. If you’re out there, I’m sorry for putting that mental image in your head.
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#46 The Best Wrong Number Text Ever Sent
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#47 Got A Text From A Wrong Number Today
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#48 Has Anyone Else Ever Gotten A Text Like This?
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#49 Now Bow To Your Sensei
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#50 Sometimes You Just Gotta Amuse Yourself With “Wrong Numbers”
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#51 I Love Wrong Number Texts
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#52 Sorry Partner. My Girlfriend Has A Thing About Wrong Numbers. She Turns Them Into Right Numbers
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#53 I Texted Someone Who I Thought Was Someone I Worked With At Chilis And It Was Someone I Went To High School With. I’ve Had The Same Number My Entire Life
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#54 My Friend Received A Random Text From A Lady So My Friend Started To Joke Around With This Person Until That Lady Noticed That She Has The Wrong Number
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#55 A Wrong Number Once Sent Me Test Results Saying They Were Obese
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#56 Is This Person For Real?
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#57 Wrong Number Text On My Work Phone
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#58 Apparently I Wrote Down My Work Friend’s Phone Number Wrong
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#59 Wrong Number Messaged Me. He Called Me 3 Times Before Texting Me
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#60 Wrong Number Gone Right?
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#61 Someone’s In Dire Need For His Fix I See
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#62 Wrong Number From A Few Months Ago Came Back, Had To Let Him Down Easy
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#63 Someone Texted Me A Few Times And I Responded After A While That They Had The Wrong Number. To Which They Replied, “Ok”, And Then Sent Me This
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#64 Received A Wrong Number Text Just Before Work Today. I Think I Handled It Pretty Well
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#65 I’m Babysitting, And I Put The Mom’s Number In My Phone Wrong
The first text is me introducing myself. I just thought it was funny because this felt hostile to me. Now I have the correct number, and all is well.
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#66 Todd Won This Round
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#67 One Of The Better Wrong Number Interactions I’ll Ever Have
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#68 This Happened Years Ago And I Just Found The Screenshots. Trying To Deliver A Pizza And The Receipt Had The Wrong Number On It. I Just Left It At This
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#69 This Guy Just Texted Me And Obviously Had The Wrong Number But He Kept Subtly Flexing How Much Good Food He Was Having At His BBQ
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#70 Some Lady Just Wrong-Number Texted Me So I Tried Being Funny But I Think I Scared Her Off From Going To Brunch
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#71 Random Number Just Sent Me This
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#72 Text From And Unknown Number. I Had To Ask The Obvious
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#73 Got This Text From An Unknown Number
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#74 I Got A Random Text Yesterday From An Unknown Number
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#75 That Was Random. I Had Two Missed Calls From This Number Then They Sent This Message. Rick Needs To Go To Jail
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#76 Got Invited To A Thanksgiving Party
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#77 Bring Me My Money
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#78 Should’ve Sent The Message
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#79 Two Years Between These Exchanges. No Response
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#80 Third Year In A Row, I Am Become Debbie
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#81 The Number Was Not Right. I Was Trying To Text My Husband And For Some Reason Started Typing My Own Phone Number. But I Didn’t Even Do That Right
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#82 Girl Keeps Texting Me And Saying I’m Someone She Knows, No Matter How Many Times I Tell Her That I’m Not Them
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#83 Help Me
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