Context

This line was sung by Harry Nilsson in the song "Coconut" (1972), written by Nilsson.

Kind of like the proverbial bad penny or gum under the desk, "Coconut" is one of those pop culture things that won't go away. Whether it's in a Coke commercial or playing over the credits of Quentin Tarantino's first film, the ballad of the lime, the coconut, and its ability to cause or cure tummy aches will endure.

Actually, "put the lime in the coconut" is part of a bigger narrative featuring a brother, sister, a doctor, and the unnamed narrator looking for a cure to an illness. It's like an episode of House, but with scat singing substituted for Hugh Laurie's snark and misanthropy. And it's not cancer or something contagious, but just a simple bellyache. In a roundabout way, the siblings discover the cure is the famous lime and coconut combo, but this doesn't work and their search is repeated ad nauseum.

It's annoying, but catchy, just like the song. And we never find out if the brother or sister are eating an actual coconut or just following the latest health food trends with a sip of coconut water.

Where you've heard it

You've heard this on an Oldies radio station that likes songs from the 1970s, or from that Coke commercial a few years back. It also pops up in quite a few famous TV shows and movies.

Additional Notable References:

• Coca Cola dropped the polar bears and brought back this old line to announce the return of Coca Cola with Lime.
• To go along with the 1970s theme of its soundtrack, including "Hooked on a Feeling" decades before Guardians of the Galaxy made it famous again, Quentin Tarantino made "Coconut" the song for the closing credits of Reservoir Dogs (1993).
• The Simpsons parodied this song with Homer replacing the word "lime" with his favorite one, "beer."
• Even The Muppets get into the spirit as the nurses sing "Coconut" to make Kermit, who is suffering from flipper ache, feel better.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

This quote is from a fun, silly song so it's not really pretentious. But if you sing it more than once, prepare for your fellow guests to reenact scenes from Reservoir Dogs on you.