What's Up With 'Denial Is A River In Egypt, Your Husband Is Gay?' Wendy Williams's Botched Idiom Explained

A bombastic audio of someone who could only be Wendy Williams has been making the rounds on TikTok lately. The phrase Denial is a river in Egypt, your husband is GAY! is being set over by people jokingly calling out others in "denial" about something, whether it be accusing people of being closeted or simply refusing to admit to something obviously true. But what does this sentence even mean? Here's a rundown of Wendy William's goofy quote and its actual roots.

Who Said 'Denial Is A River In Egypt'?

Quite honestly, no one before Wendy. To be fair, she likely meant to allude to the popular idiom "Denial is not just a river in Egypt," or variations of that line, which has been attached to everyone from Mark Twain to James Patterson. The quote is of course in reference to the Nile river, which does in fact famously run through Egypt.

Wendy felt compelled to whip out this age-old idiom in an episode of The Wendy Williams Experience, where she got in a recording booth and fielded calls from various listeners. After one caller described her worries about her husband being bisexual, Wendy cleared the air for everyone by emphatically saying the line in question.

How Did The Phrase Become A Meme On TikTok?

Sometime in November 2022, a TikToker uploaded the aforementioned quote to the platform with the caption, "Me talking to one of da boyz's girlfriends about what I saw in the locker rooms." This set off a chain of videos where people used the sound to point to things they think are just obviously gay. Other users used the sound to share their unpopular beliefs.

What Are the 'Denial Is A River' Mash-Ups?

Here's what Wendy Williams, Mickey Mouse Club House and Finn Wolfhard have in common: they're all in a viral TikTok sound. A popular green screen edit of Finn Wolfhard snapping is being used for "glow-up" style videos on TikTok, entering the running for the weirdest pop culture crossover ever.

For the full history of the quote, be sure to check out our entry on the slang term here for even more information.