be news to someone

be news to (one)

To be something that one was not aware of or did not know. A: "Yeah, Jeff and Anthony have been going out for a few months now." B: "Well, that's news to me. I thought they were just friends." You aren't allowed to dump your grass clippings here? Well, that's news to me!See also: news

be news to someone

COMMON If someone says something and you say that it is news to you, you mean that you did not know about it before. So she's an experienced babysitter, is she? This is news to me. People have been telling me I've been in meetings about selling my business. All I can say is that it's news to me. Note: You usually use this expression to express surprise at what has been said, or to suggest that it may not be true. See also: news, someone