Best Excuses to Use to Explain Away a Hickey

Get yourself out of an awkward conversation with these believable excuses

Co-authored by Ali Garbacz

Last Updated: February 16, 2023 References

Uh oh. You’ve been caught sporting a big hickey and now are getting interrogated about where it came from and who gave it to you. How do you get yourself out of this sticky situation? Lucky for you, we’ve got a whole list of excuses you can use to explain away that suspicious mark on your skin.

Things You Should Know

Explain that it’s not a hickey, but actually a bruise or other injury left after some accident.
Say your skin became irritated due to some sort of allergic reaction.
Claim that it’s something else entirely, like a mosquito bite or a temporary tattoo attempt gone wrong.
Tell them it’s a skin condition, such as dry skin, acne, or an ingrown hair.

1

“It’s just a bruise.”

Explain it away as just your everyday bruise. A hickey is technically a bruise, so you’re basically telling the truth anyways. You’re just tweaking the details of where this bruise actually came from. Some excuses you can use that involve ending up with a bruise include:
- “I got hit on the leg/arm with the ball when I was playing tennis with my friend.”
- “That’s a bruise from when I got blood drawn.”
- “I had to get a vaccine and it ended up leaving a bruise.”
- “My friend was massaging my neck and pressed way too hard.”
- “I ran into the door when I was coming in.”
- “I might have gone too hard when exercising.”

2

“I burned myself with my curling iron.”

Tell them it’s a mark leftover from touching something hot. Accidents happen, and it’s totally believable that you might have accidentally gotten too close to something hot and ended up burning yourself. These are especially good excuses for when you have a hickey on your neck.
- “I was straightening my hair and burned my neck with the flat iron.”
- “I was waxing and made the wax way too hot.”
- “I left a heating pad on for too long and it actually left a mark.”^{[1]
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- “I spilled hot coffee on myself.”

3

“I cut myself shaving.”

Say that it’s a self-inflicted injury. Make up a story about how you accidentally hurt yourself. People get little injuries here and there on the daily, so it’s a completely understandable explanation.
- “This necklace I was wearing pinched my neck and left a mark.”
- “I hit myself pretty hard trying to kill a bug.”
- “I snapped a rubber band against my skin and now there’s a mark.”

4

“It’s a mosquito bite.”

Cover it up as a mark left by some animal or insect. Something like a mosquito bite is perfect to explain away a hickey no matter where it might be on your body. Of course, this won’t work if it’s the middle of winter and the mosquitos aren’t out, but here are some other alternatives:^{[2]
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- “I got bit by a spider.”
- “My cat scratched me.”
- “My dog accidentally bit me when we were playing.”

5

“My skin reacted badly to my new moisturizer.”

Say it’s an allergic reaction. Some allergic reactions can result in itchy skin, rashes, or hives, so disguising your hickey as one of these other marks would make sense. Make sure it’s an allergy that’s believable. For example, if you say it’s an allergic reaction to a food you’ve never shown a reaction to before, then chances are the other person won’t believe you. Here are some other suggestions:
- “I was trying a new foundation and my skin got irritated.”
- “My skin reacted badly with the nickel in my necklace.”
- “I ran into poison ivy when I was out walking.”
- “It’s a side effect from the medicine I’m taking.”^{[3]
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6

“The strap on my bag was rubbing against my neck.”

Tell them it’s the result of some chafing. Having something constantly rubbing against your skin can leave the area red and irritated for up to a couple days. This will make a great excuse if you can’t get rid of your hickey right away and need to bide some time.
- “My watch was on too tight.”
- “My seatbelt kept rubbing against my neck.”
- “This pair of shorts I have chafes so badly.”

7

“My acne was acting up.”

Blame it on a skin condition. Some skin conditions, like acne or eczema, can result in marks being left behind or discoloration of the skin, especially if you tend to scratch or pick at those areas. But even if you don’t have a chronic skin condition, you can use other excuses that fall along the same lines.^{[4]
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- “I was picking at a pimple that was behind my ear.”
- “It’s an ingrown hair.”
- “My skin is just naturally dry and I can’t stop scratching.”

8

“It’s actually a temporary tattoo that got messed up.”

Say it’s something completely unrelated to being a hickey. Throw everyone off your trail by offering a completely believable yet unrelated explanation as to why you suddenly have a dark mark on your skin. It’s not a hickey, it just looks like a hickey.
- “It’s the stamp I got when I went to the club last night.”
- “I got hit during paintball and it left a stain.”
- “I was painting with watercolors and got some on myself.”
- “My friend asked me to help dye their hair and some of the dye got on me.”
- “It’s just dirt.”
- “I dropped my makeup brush while doing my makeup and I guess it got everywhere.”

9

“It’s a birthmark.”

Make it out to be something that’s always been there. If you’re trying to convince someone who doesn’t know you too well, like a colleague or a friend of a friend, this is a good excuse. Just make sure it’s not in a super obvious place, such as your neck, since it’ll eventually fade. It’d probably be just as awkward to have to explain why your birthmark disappeared all of a sudden.
- “Oh that? It’s a port-wine stain.”^{[5]
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- “That’s a scar from when I was younger.”

10

“It’s just a fake hickey.”

Admit that it’s a hickey, but not a real one. Joking around and giving your friends fake hickies isn’t something totally out of the question. While whoever’s asking might give you a questioning look, this certainly saves you from having to explain where the hickey actually came from.
- “We were playing truth or dare.”
- “I lost a bet.”
- “My friend does stage makeup and wanted to test out making a fake hickey on me.”

11

“I’m wearing this scarf because it’s cold in here.”

Have excuses ready even if you cover up your hickey. There are lots of things you can do to hide a hickey, but your friends and family might still be suspicious. Things like wearing a scarf, long-sleeve shirts, turtlenecks, and other accessories might hide the mark, but if it looks out of place, people might still ask questions. Here are some things you can say to explain your fashion choices:
- “I’m experimenting with wearing new accessories.”
- “I don’t want my arms to tan, so I wore long sleeves.”
- “I haven’t shaved my legs in a week, so jeans it is.”

12

“That’s clearly not a hickey.”

Use reverse psychology to convince them it’s not a hickey. Choose your words carefully and manipulate the situation to make them admit themselves that it’s not what they think it is.
- “I don’t even have a boyfriend/girlfriend. How could I possibly get a hickey?”
- “Believe what you want, but I think I’d remember if I got a hickey from someone.”
- “Don’t you know what a hickey looks like? This clearly isn’t one.”

13

“Oh, I didn’t even notice that was there.”

Feign ignorance. Playing dumb is always an option. Act surprised when someone points it out, as though you hadn’t known it was there the entire time. You can even go as far as pretending nothing’s even there, though this may not fool many people.
- “What’s a hickey?”
- “Are you sure? I don’t see anything.”
- “Huh, that wasn’t there when I last checked.”