Meaning
What does Wambulance mean?
If someone is complaining, whining and completely overreacting, you call the wambulance.
It is an imaginary ambulance for imaginary grave situations. It is used as a dismissive response to someone who is being irrational.
If a person is throwing a tantrum, acting like a real cry baby going “waah waah”, you insult them by saying “I’m gonna call the wambulance!”, because of the similarity of the expression “waah” and “wambulance”.
Origin
What's the origin of Wambulance?
The first ever mention of the “wambulance” was in the 2000 Disney film “The Kid”, and as there is no evidence for any other origin, said film likely coined the term.
It was defined on Urban Dictionary in 2002 as follows:
“When somebody gets upset, you call the Wambulance.”
Person 1: “I just stubbed my toe!”
Person 2: “CRY ME A FRIGGEN RIVER! SOMEBODY CALL THE WAMBULANCE!”
Spread & Usage
How did Wambulance spread?
January 17, 2015, a cut from the fan parody of the Yu-Gi-Oh! series Yu-Gi-Oh: The Abridged shows a dubbed clip where the characters are calling the “wambulance” because “Matt” has a severe case of “butt-hurt”.
In the competitive typing game Nitro Type, you can obtain a “wambulance” by completing the “Ecstatic About Typing” achievement. As reward, you will receive an achievement car looking like an ambulance.
External resources
- Bleedingcool.com – “Modern Family”: Ducks, “Wambulances” & More