Full disclosure, dear Pandas: some of us may not have ever tried online dating and might keep getting ‘swipe left’ and ‘swipe right’ confused whenever someone’s talking about it. But as we understand it, Tinder is some kind of fancy wood-finding service (you’d better believe that this pun is intended) on those fancy futuristic devices people call ‘smartphones.’ You meet someone you like, you drink some coffee, and then you get married, right? Correct us if we’re wrong, but that’s exactly what’s happened to a lot of our friends!

One thing’s for sure, though—dating is tough, especially when you have to learn about your potential soulmate through a magical digital mirror that only shows you their good sides. However, there are some hilarious and entertainingly awkward (and sometimes even downright creepy) moments to be had while chatting on Tinder, that’s for sure. Check out the best ones collected by our Bored Panda dating experts, upvote the ones that you enjoyed the most, and share any interesting online dating stories that you want in the comments.

In the mood for some more digital romance? We’ve got you covered. Instead of the traditional flower bouquet and box of chocolates, have a look through our earlier article about the most hilarious posts about Tinder.

To understand the world of online dating better and to learn how to determine whether somebody on Tinder is being genuine, Bored Panda reached out to the founder of The Modern Man, relationship expert Dan Bacon. According to him, online and traditional dating are both fundamentally different ball games, texting is easy but can deceive us, and, while it’s important to be playful and attention-grabbing on Tinder, it shouldn’t be overdone as it “can come across as try-hard or desperate, which results in rejection just like in real-life interactions.” You’ll find his insights below, so be sure to read on.

#1 My Greatest Magic Trick Revealed

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#2 Ladies And Gentleman. We’re In

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#3 Damn

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If you want to find out whether somebody is telling the truth and generally being genuine on apps like Tinder, then it’s vital that you don’t just stick to chatting via text. “Get to a phone call, or video call as quickly as possible, so you can actually get a feel for each other and see if you click. At the very least, send voice texts back and forth so you can determine each other’s level of interest, as well as personality type and temperament,” relationship expert Dan explained that you should out in the extra effort and go for various different types of interactions.

And while just texting back and forth can seem like a fun and easy way to communicate, it can be deceiving. As a result, this can lead to someone’s feelings getting hurt because they’ve interpreted their potential partner’s words or emojis in a way that’s far too removed from reality. “A man might send a woman a text and she then replies with a laughing emoji, with tears of laughter. He thinks he’s doing well, but in reality, she is rolling her eyes and thinking that his joke was lame. He might then continue using that type of humor and causing a disconnect between himself and her,” Dan said. He reiterated that phone calls, video calls, or even those humble things we call voice texts can be a way to solve this conundrum.

#4 How Did You Know I Was A Painter?

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#5 I’ve Peaked. I Can’t Top This

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#6 I’m Probably Gonna Get Unmatched

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“Online dating is more superficial and based on appearances compared to real-world interactions, which is more about how both people feel when interacting with each other in person,” the founder of The Modern Man put it bluntly.

What’s more, online dating completely changes the “positions of power” that men and women are in. In short, the relationship expert noted that online dating seems to favor women while traditional dating favors men. Dan said that when it comes to Tinder and similar apps, women are “in the position of power” because of the large amount of attention they’re getting from many men who want to be their match. According to him, this can then lead to women “significantly” increasing their standards.

“A woman who would normally accept an average, confident, good guy in real life, will often have very high standards and only accept very good looking men on Tinder, or online dating. This results in millions of average-looking men wasting their time trying to match up with women who just aren’t going to give them a chance. It also results in some women being able to date very good-looking men who normally wouldn’t be interested,” he said.

#7 I Made A Tinder Funny, How’d I Do?

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#8 Tinder Delivers

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#9 Got Blocked Lol

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“With traditional dating, average-looking men can enjoy the position of power because almost all men are afraid to approach and talk to women in real life. When an average looking man has the confidence to approach and talk to a woman in real life, as well as the ability to flirt and create a spark during a conversation, he will find that many of the single women he meets show interest and give their phone number,” Dan detailed how different traditional dating is from its online equivalent. “In some cases, a pretty woman who would never be interested in him via online dating or Tinder, can fall in love, marry and start a family with him all from him having the courage to walk up and say hello to her in person.”

However, there appears to be a crisis of courage in modern society. Dan pointed out that most guys don’t have the courage to walk up to someone in person and talk to them, so they choose to go down the path of online dating. And, while that’s easier, the competition’s also far bigger. “They end up competing with tens of thousands of other men for the same woman on online dating or Tinder,” he said.

“Many guys spend years trying to get a match via online dating when they could get a match in real life in a matter of minutes or hours if they just had the confidence to approach and ability to flirt and create a spark,” the relationship expert hinted that online dating shouldn’t be used in isolation but perhaps as a supplement to traditional dating which requires more effort and, well, courage.

#10 Looking Through My Phone And Found This Gem Of A Tinder Conversation

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#11 I Wonder How Fast She Will Unmatch

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#12 My Tinder Is A Joke Account Where I Tell People Train Facts And Answer Questions About Trains. I Research Railway History

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In an earlier interview, we had a chat with relationship expert Dan, the founder of The Modern Man project, about the ups and downs of relationships and what to do if you’re sitting on the fence about breaking up. He explained that every situation is unique, however, if you feel like your relationship is in trouble, you should try to find the reasons why you seem to be having issues.

“It really depends on why you are on the fence about breaking up. If you’re temporarily feeling that way after a fight, or a problem that occurred in the relationship [or if] you feel that way all the time, or very often,” relationship expert Dan said that you shouldn’t make rash decisions if your problems can be solved and if your feelings of doubt are only temporary.

#13 Crocs Are Finally Good For Something

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#14 Awwwwweeee

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#15 “Good Luck”

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“You need to understand that overcoming problems together as a couple can make you closer, stronger, and more committed if you approach it correctly,” Dan said that difficulties in relationships can be an opportunity to strengthen your relationship.

“If wanting to break up is a feeling that you have all the time, or very often, then that person isn’t the one for you,” relationship expert Dan said that good, strong relationships have to be clear and unambiguous. If you can’t decide how you feel about someone, then, perhaps, it’s time to move on.

#16 Dammit Karen

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#17 This Couldn’t Have Gone Any Better Than It Did

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#18 Perks Of Being My School’s Mascot

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“When a couple love each other and truly want to be with each other for life, they won’t be on the fence about it. It will be as clear as day for them that they want to be with each other and no one else, so breaking up won’t even seem like an option to them,” he told Bored Panda.

“[Breaking up] will almost seem laughable because they know they wouldn’t want to be with anyone else as much as they want to be with each other.”

#19 Swing And A Miss

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#20 Matched With The First Boy I Ever Kissed, I Wasn’t Sure If He Would Remember

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#21 Psychic Powers

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According to Dan, getting temporarily annoyed at one another in a relationship isn’t the same as the relationship breaking down. “If they happen to have an argument or experience a problem in the relationship, they might temporarily feel a bit annoyed at each other, but they’ll both be willing to fix it, grow and make the relationship better from then on,” he said. “That’s what the happiest, most in love couples do.”

#22 She Just Killed Me

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#23 Love Finding Girls That Share The Same Hobbies

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#24 I Can’t Take Compliments

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#25 Improvise. Adapt. Overcome

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#26 He Didn’t Even Get My Joke

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#27 I’m Doing This

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#28 Not A Meteorologist

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#29 Automated Tinder Response

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#30 Her Friend Was Right

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#31 Was Swiping At The Dispensary When I Looked Up And Saw The Girl I Was About To Swipe On

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#32 Was Immediately Unmatched. I Am Proud Of My Joke Though

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#33 Insert Punchline

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#34 That’s A Big L My Friend

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#35 Definition Of Perfection? I Think Yes

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#36 Well I Got A Response

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#37 Her Bio Said That She Loves Debating

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#38 Simon Says

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#39 Poor Marissa. Never Underestimate Deceptively Emotional Sonnets

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#40 My New Holiday Tradition

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#41 The Dream

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#42 The Pick Up Line With A 99% Success Rate

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#43 We Were Talking About Avatar The Last Airbender

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#44 I’m Impressed How Quickly I Came Up With This Response

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#45 Honesty Is The Best Policy

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#46 Gotta Admit I Felt Pretty Creative For That One

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#47 I Think I Found The One

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#48 Really Love Crabs, Man

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#49 Hello, You’re Not Tall

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#50 Jailbait

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#51 What Are The Chances?

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#52 That’s What They Mean, Right?

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#53 An Eye For An Eye, I Guess

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#54 I’m Proud Of You

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#55 I Think I’m Getting The Hand Of This Now

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#56 Ironic

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#57 Works 60% Of The Time, Every Time

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#58 I Woke Up And Chose Violence

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#59 So Does This Mean I Pass?

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#60 Why I Shouldn’t Be On This App

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#61 Am I Doing This Right?

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#62 Pokemon Facts

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#63 It’s Fun To Stay At The

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#64 Sliiiiiide To The Left

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#65 The Beard Stays, But You Can Leave

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#66 Please Don’t Start Your Conversations Like This

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#67 Hiking

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#68 Face Ride?

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#69 I’m In

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#70 Wait What

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#71 Her Profile Said She Wouldn’t Date Anyone Who Would Split The Bill

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#72 I Think Someone Really Hot Swiped Right

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#73 Surprisingly, I’m Still Single

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#74 We’re In Boys

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#75 A Damn Good Roast

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#76 Tinder Is A Weird Place

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#77 Leo Season Is Cancelled

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#78 Fruit Snacks?

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#79 Thankful

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#80 I Know What I Want

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#81 This Did Not Steer The Conversation In The Right Direction

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#82 Sounded Way Better In My Head

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#83 I’m Up There With Zac Efron

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#84 Who Doesn’t Like A Good Opener?

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#85 He Blocked Me. At Least I Think I’m Funny

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#86 “Honesty Is The Best Policy” They Said

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#87 Humble Brag

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#88 Recently Got Back Into Tinder. She Unmatched Me

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#89 It Said In Her Bio That She Was A Sales Rep

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#90 She Asked “What’s Your Zodiac Sign” In Her Bio

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#91 Ouch

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#92 I Should Be Out Of The Hospital By The End Of The Week

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#93 I Was Proud Of This One

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#94 What Now

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#95 He Did Not Like The Chat That Much

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#96 Reflecting Saturday

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#97 Dedication

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#98 F

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#99 An Attempt Was Made

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#100 I Hate These Apps

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#101 Somethings Wrong, I Can Feel It

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#102 Ladies, This Is How It Is Done

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#103 Death And Taxes, Amirite?

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#104 She Didn’t Respond

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#105 Swear I Didn’t Plan To Be This Smooth When I Woke Up This Morning

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#106 We’re Kate And Nate And We Think We’re Pretty Great

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#107 What Is Going On Here

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#108 When You Used To Play League Of Legends And You Also Don’t Know How To Flirt

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#109 What

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#110 I’m A Man Of Many Qualities

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#111 That Was Quick

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Source: boredpanda.com