There’s no accounting for taste

There's no accounting for taste means it's impossible to understand why different people like different things. People like what they like.

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Proverb: There’s no accounting for taste

It’s been said that variety is the spice of life.

I’m glad someone said it because when I look at some of the fashion or designs around me, I can’t help but think there’s no accounting for taste.

I come from a monocultural island in the Atlantic Ocean.

When I was young, we considered people who didn’t like the same things as us odd.

Over the years, since leaving home, I’ve tried to expose myself to all sorts of art and culture.

Of course, there were some things I developed a soft spot for and more stuff I didn’t.

The hardest part was teaching myself to have an open mind and accept the preferences of others (even if they did have bad taste).

Developing this openness is essential because there’s no accounting for taste.


What I mean is it’s impossible to understand why different people like different things.


People like what they like, and you cannot debate or argue with them about it.

The clothing people wear, the colour of their houses, or the cars they buy are all intimate expressions of their tastes.

There are various situations where this openness comes in handy.

As an example, you may think your daughter’s fiance is the saddest excuse for a man you’ve ever seen.

You cringe at the thought of having him as a son-in-law.

But she loves him dearly, and nothing you can say will change her mind.

Then there are some things that even the most openest minds cannot accept.

If I were ever unfortunate enough to be run over and killed by a person driving a Nissan Rasheen, my corpse would roll away and under another car.

It wouldn’t want to be caught dead next to the ugliest car ever manufactured.

I know two lovely ladies who used to drive that car.

They are otherwise very stylish ladies, but when it comes to cars, well, let’s say there’s no accounting for taste.


Flesch-Kincaid Readability Test

This post is understandable by someone with at least a 7th-grade education (age 12).  

On the Flesch-Kincaid reading-ease test, this post scores 75.  

The easier a passage is to read, the higher the score on a scale of 0 – 100.

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