English Reference
Idiom idiom

now you mention it


Used to precede another comment about something just mentioned.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.


SIMPLE

Now you mention it, I do feel quite hungry.

CONTEXTUAL

I did not notice the strange noise earlier, but now you mention it, the engine does sound a bit odd.

COMPLEX

Although I had initially dismissed the discrepancy as a minor clerical error, now you mention it, the pattern does suggest a more systematic problem with our accounting.


A shortening of the phrase *now that you mention it*, appearing in the written record by at least the late 19th century as a conversational formula for acknowledging a newly introduced topic.


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    any time now

    Very soon.

  2. 02

    come to mention it

    What you just said reminds me of something; Used to justify a change of subject or a kind of statement that needs some kind of license.

  3. 03

    honorable mention

    An award or recognition given to a person or thing who does not achieve a higher standing but whose performance or entry was noteworthy.

  4. 04

    make mention of

    To briefly refer to something; to mention.

  5. 05

    now and again

    Synonym of occasionally, sometimes, intermittently.

  6. 06

    now and then

    Synonym of occasionally, sometimes, intermittently.

  7. 07

    now for

    Used to introduce something that is to occur or be presented next.

  8. 08

    now or never

    At this sole opportunity or time, or not at all.

Last updated August 10, 2026