Right off the bat, let’s define pareidolia : the tendency to perceive a specific, often meaningful image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern
So, basically, it’s a big word to describe the phenomenon of things looking like other things. And man, sometimes things really look like other things.
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Happy Halloween!
I’m not sure what time of year this pic was snapped, but there’s a real jack o’ lantern (a goofy one at that) vibe to the way the clouds are covering the setting sun.
T H I C C.
It’s nice to see this roast beef flaunting what it’s got. After all, meat comes in all shapes and sizes, so who’s to say what’s beautiful and what isn’t? May as well shake it.
That’s an ominous commute.
Clouds often take on the shape of other things. But when they take on the shape of a frowning face that fills up the whole sky, lit with hellfire from below, it’s probably best to just go back inside.
Eerie.
Most of the items on this list are at least a little bit goofy. But the way this waterfall looks just like an elegant lady in a dress is downright captivating.
The purr-fect squirt.
I tried to come up with a better pun for this dab of lotion looking exactly like a cartoon cat, but I couldn’t. So just enjoy the way this dab of lotion looks exactly like a cartoon cat.
Let it out!
That adorable little dog is trapped in that plastic box with its more smush-faced brethren. There aren’t even any air holes! Please, somebody let this poor doggo out of its plastic prison.
I, jeweler.
The blue-green lighting and, of course, the mirror making it look like this guy has a robotic face, combine to turn an ordinary scene into something dystopian.
My mood.
When you’re tapping a keg of ice-cold beer on a beautiful summer day, it’s a great feeling. You might even feel as happy and self-satisfied as the gut on the guy on the left.
Big chungus.
Certain animals — the ones that tend to get adorably fat and shapeless — are often compared to potatoes. Nowhere has that analogy been more bang-on than with this tater, though.
“You think I’m crazy?”
Look, some security cameras are unpredictable, okay? I’m just pointing it out, because this camera looks like it might have had enough with you. It might even get stabby.
That’s reassuring.
No one likes going to the dentist, and no one wants to stare a full-grown water buffalo down. But when the dentist’s equipment looks this much like a kind, benevolent water buffalo, it’s probably a good sign.
He is risen, he is sizzlin’.
Considering how uncannily Jesus-like this bacon looks, I’m surprised the owner hasn’t put it up on eBay. I’ve seen burnt toast that looks vaguely Christ-like go for big bucks in the past.
Coolest Corolla ever.
Now, unsafe driving isn’t cool at all. But this Corolla is posing so jauntily with its big cigar, and even using a cool selfie stick, that I can’t help but think it’s at least a little bit cool.
Heroes in a half shell.
This almost looks too spot-on to be an accident. Still, intentional or not, it proves a universal truth: the more we can make inanimate things look like Ninja Turtles, the happier we’ll all be.
We’ve all been there.
This box has woken up all messy-faced in a puddle of its own filth. The dawning realization of what happened last night shows in its expression. It’s a tough place to be in.
But we don’t have a cat.
It took me a second to realize this wasn’t a wood sculpture or something like that. But no, it’s just a regular old plastic bag that somehow looks exactly like a kitty.
The capped crusader.
It’s a sign of just how simplistic and iconic Batman’s branding is that this gas cap’s extremely simple shadow looks exactly like the Caped Crusader.
Uhhh…
I don’t know if this is intentional, but it’s amazing how much two Powerade bottles can look like a pair of unblinking, traumatized eyes when you place them on a blanket that looks like a derpy mouth.
Yoshi?
It turns out some Ford steering wheels look eerily like everybody’s favorite egg-spitting dinosaur from the Mushroom Kingdom. I’d insert a Yoshi sound effect here, but I have no idea how you’d spell it.
While we’re on the superhero theme…
It’s cool because this phenomenon isn’t unique to this one orange. This image has inspired me to turn every orange I eat for the rest of my life into an interactive Spider-Man diorama.
