Growing up, I had to share a bedroom with my sibling all throughout my childhood up until the point where I left for college. My first roommate ever was an only child, and sharing space with a peer was much more traumatic for them than it was for me. Our third roommate had a habit of 'forgetting' which snacks belonged to them, and would often help themselves to whatever was lying around. While I was sometimes mildly annoyed by this, the behavior was nothing new to me. My only child roommate, on the other hand, was absolutely appalled and reacted to these sorts of actions as if they were crimes against humanity.
There are many subtle differences between people who grew up with and without siblings, and this fascinating Reddit thread discusses some of the funniest and most interesting dead giveaways that someone is an only child.
"My friend jokingly threw a tea towel at me and I let is land on me. She said that was classic only child behavior to not instantly throw it back and try to hit her with it." said u/RaspberryTurtle987.
"Yeah, the media you get is what your parents get for you. So PS2 was my only console since I requested one for my birthday and that's really it. Bigger families might have older siblings have older consoles, media, movies etc." said u/Top_Lengthy.
"Now that I'm in my 30s I've trained myself to say where I'm going when I leave a room but it STILL feels so awkward when I do it. I also distinctly remember being confused in my first few relationships when people told me they were going to the restroom (okay?) and irritated when I would get up to go and they'd ask me where I'm going (like, we're in a 1 b/r apartment and I'm not walking out the door, there are only so many options.)" said u/pissliquors.
"Hypothesis: I think we don't have practice of dealing with conflict. I had an argument with someone a few years back and I fully expected it to be awkward between us when we saw each other the next day, but she (not an only child) started chatting with me like everything was fine. I was taken aback and thought this would have lasted for much longer." said u/RaspberryTurtle987.
"I wouldn't have teamed up with my best friends against their parents, or refuse to listen to their parents… but me and my sister? Like a two man army in an us vs. our parents battle" said u/aw-fuck.
"Yep. Whenever my siblings and I would unionize we were unstoppable." said u/KitchenSwillForPigs.
"Also they haven't had as much practice with dividing food X times. Me and my siblings are good at doing pretty perfect three-way divisions of food because the rule was that whoever cut the item chose their piece last. A real incentive to make everything as perfectly equal as possible!" said u/LD50_irony.
"Doesn't flinch when someone makes a fist quickly" said u/islandsimian.
"Yes! I teach middle school, and I can usually spot the only kids by seeing which students gravitate towards chatting with me rather than their peers during downtime. They seem more comfortable and confident just hanging out with the older person in the room." said u/catsandcabsav.