The meaning of "I've rather put my foot in it."

[amkon]

Clarkson wrote on Friday that he "hated [Meghan Markle] on a cellular level".

In a tweet on Monday, he said: "Oh dear. I've rather put my foot in it."

What is the meaning of "I've rather put my foot in it."?

Does it mean "I've made a mistake"?

BBC

Jeremy Clarkson says he is 'horrified' over Meghan column

The broadcaster had written in the Sun on Friday that he "hated" the Duchess of Sussex.

www.bbc.com

 

[Barque]

Yes. Specifically, it means you've said something tactless.

It isn't used for any mistake but only for things you say (or write).

 

[amkon]

Thanks.

Does "on a cellular level" mean or imply because of her skin colour?

 

[Barque]

No, it's nothing to do with the colour of her skin. It means "at a very basic level" and is used for emphasis. (It's a fairly modern expression in this context; I doubt you'd have heard it more than twenty or so years ago.)

 

[Tdol]

Does "on a cellular level" mean or imply because of her skin colour?

No- it means that he doesn't just hate her as a person, he hates every cell in her body. It's just a way of saying that you really hate someone- everything about them.

 

[amkon]

the colour of her skin

Is "the colour of her skin" better than/different to "her skin colour"?

 

[probus]

While denotatively there is no difference, "skin colour" is often used as code or a synonym for race. I can never use the word race in respect to people without remarking that race is a purely social construct which has not a scintilla of scientific basis.

 

[teechar]

It isn't used for any every mistake but only for things you say (or write).

Not quite. It can also apply to what a person does.

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/put-your-foot-in-it

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