Verbose, also called Classy Memes, is an image macro and caption style that rewrites existing memes in deliberately overblown, aristocratic English, often paired with top hat and monocle iconography.

Where did Verbose come from?

The format grew out of early 2010s image macro and YouTube Poop culture; no single creator is documented, and it spread as a shared convention across forums and video edits.

What does Verbose mean?

Verbosity means using far more words than needed to express an idea, with synonyms like prolixity and garrulousness; the meme leans into that excess for comic effect.

How do you use Verbose?

Take an existing meme caption, rewrite it with the longest, most formal synonyms you can find, add Victorian-sounding filler, and often draw the subject in a top hat and monocle.

Is Verbose still popular?

Verbose is a classic format rather than a current trend; it settled into a long-running stylistic convention in image macro and YouTube Poop remixes rather than a viral peak.

Verbose

2011image macroclassic

Published October 4, 2026

Verbose, also known as Classy Memes, is a meme format that rewrites existing jokes using inflated, aristocratic English and pairs them with top hat, monocle, and cane iconography. The style arose in early 2010s image macro and YouTube Poop culture as the deliberate opposite of lolspeak, turning plain-spoken captions into stiff Victorian prose.

dialogue edit memes image macro memes early 2010s memes youtube poop memes slang memes

Overview

Verbose, also known as Classy Memes, works by taking a familiar meme or catchphrase and padding it out with thesaurus English, Latinate word choices, and 19th century phrasing1. A punchline that would normally run four words gets inflated into a full sentence with subordinate clauses, honorifics, and words like prolixity or garrulousness standing in for ordinary ones3. The humor sits in the gap between the trivial joke underneath and the pompous wrapper around it.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

Image boards / YouTube (viral spread)

Date

2011

The format grew out of early 2010s image macro culture, where edits often paired the inflated captions with a subject drawn in top hat, monocle, and sometimes a cane, styled after a late 19th century aristocrat3. Know Your Meme describes Verbose as a jokes-upon-jokes format closely related to the Bayeux Tapestry meme, which also builds its humor by rewording an existing meme rather than inventing a new premise3. No single creator or first post is documented; the style spread as a shared convention across image boards and fan communities rather than from one viral image.

The aesthetic deliberately read as the opposite of lolspeak, the deliberately misspelled dialect popularized by LOLcats, with Verbose edits piling on correct grammar, formal syntax, and ornate vocabulary where lolspeak stripped them away3.

How It Spread

Verbose spread as a style rather than a single image, showing up as a running gag in forum threads, image macro remixes, and YouTube Poop videos through the early 2010s3. YouTube Poop creators in particular adopted the Verbose register for narration and on-screen text, matching the format's taste for ornate language against absurd source clips2 4.

Fan communities built dedicated threads around the format, including a "Verbose your memes" thread on MLP Forums, a Verbose Meme Game on Diablo Fans, and a "Verbose Gentleman" entry on the World of Smash Bros Wiki, though those pages are no longer reachable3. Example YouTube uploads in the Verbose style include edits catalogued on the Know Your Meme entry such as rEBjMHABciM and svVcaUXNI201 5.

The meme never had a chart-topping viral peak; it settled instead into a long-running stylistic convention that image macro remixers still reach for when a joke calls for a gentleman narrator3.

Timeline

2011

Verbose-style edits begin circulating on image boards and fan forums, pairing aristocratic iconography with inflated captions.

2012

YouTube Poop creators adopt the Verbose register for narration and on-screen text, including uploads catalogued on Know Your Meme.

2013

Dedicated threads such as MLP Forums' "Verbose your memes" and Diablo Fans' Verbose Meme Game formalize the format inside fan communities.

How to Use This Meme

To make a Verbose edit, start with an existing meme caption and rewrite it using the longest, most formal synonyms available, then layer in Victorian-sounding filler such as "one is given to understand" or "it would appear." Common convention adds a top hat and monocle to the subject, and often a cane3. The joke typically works best when the underlying meme is extremely blunt or crude, so the mismatch with the aristocratic phrasing lands harder.