you had to be there

you had to be there

You would only really understand or appreciate something if you had been present when it happened or was said. A: "I don't get it." B: "Sorry, it was more about the way Jeff did it that was funny. I guess you had to be there." A: "So, tell me about the party!" B: "Oh, it was wild. You really had to be there, because words wouldn't do it justice."

See also: there, to

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

You had to be there

and YHTBT

sent. & comp. abb. You had to be in a place to understand what happened or what was said there. Yeah, it was funnier when I heard it. YHTBT.

See also: there, to

McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.