It’s unsure who would even trying during the time of #MeToo when an askance glance can get someone in trouble, but a study by a Cypriot researcher of Greek-speaking men and women showed an inability to flirt well or right.

Published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences by Menelaos Apostolou from the University of Nicosia it was said to have found the top reasons for imperfect flirting, and it’s not always the other person’s fault.

The site IFL Science said the research into so-called “involuntary singles” who want a partner but can’t find the right one despite trying everything from bars to online dating, showed people don’t know what they’re doing wrong.

The study involved 1,228 people over the age of 18 with varying relationship status, asking each to fill out a series of online surveys to test predictors of singleness, including their ability to flirt.

Also, knowing how to pick up when someone’s interested in you and how much effort they put into dating, the correlated data analyzed to include whether people really want to be single or find it difficult to find someone.

The results showed that the largest deciding factor was an inability to flirt without indicating whether people are even daring to try in these tremulous times when people are on edge about how what they do is perceived.

The next biggest factor was how well participants perceived interest of a mate,  many struggling with the "do they like me or don’t they" aspect of dating and whether they’re being thrown a signal or hint, even if gingerly now.

The site noted that as with all survey-based studies, the results may be biased and influenced by the participants’ confidence in themselves and skewed by people boasting about flirting skills.

But if you’re looking for a partner, it indicated trying to improve how you reach out to someone, but no advice was given on how to do that more specifically.