Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings apologized to a female contestant after reading out a ‘sexist’ clue

Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings apologized to a female contestant after reading out a ‘sexist’ clue – admitting that the question had been ‘a little problematic’.

During Monday’s episode, player Heather Ryan, a health program director from Binghamton, New York, buzzed in for a question from the ‘Complete the Rhyming Phrase’ category.

Ken, 50, then asked the phrase: ‘Men seldom make passes at…’

Fellow contestant Will Wallace, a game design director from Austin, Texas, correctly buzzed in with the answer ‘girls who wear glasses’.

Presenter Ken was quick to call the clue ‘a little problematic’ before apologizing to Heather, who also happened to be wearing glasses.

The clue came from the ‘Complete the Rhyming Phrase’ category

Former reigning champion Will also quipped ‘very’.

Luckily, Heather didn’t seem too rattled by the situation – and Ken quickly moved the game on.

Jeopardy! fans, however, blasted the ‘sexist’ clue on social media and slammed the category too.

Taking to Reddit, one said: ‘Rhyming phrases category was awful, especially the sexist clue.’

Echoing a similar sentiment, another added: ‘Frankly, I don’t need to hear Ken read an obviously outdated and inappropriate clue and then call it ‘problematic’.

A third penned on X: ‘More like extremely problematic!’

‘Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses’ is a quote from the late New York socialite and commentator Dorothy Parker from the 1920s and 1930s.

By the end of the episode, Will had just $2 in the bank, while Heather had accrued $19,600.

Heather Ryan, a health program director from Binghamton, New York, was given the clue

But it was Will Wallace, a game design director from Austin, Texas, who answered it

Viewers blasted the clue on social media, branding it ‘extremely problematic’

But it was Ian Taylor, a food sales representative originally from Cleveland, Ohio, who won the game with an impressive $19,601.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Ken was at risk of being axed in favor of Pop Culture Jeopardy! host Colin Jost.

The Mirror claimed that producers of the show were prompted to weigh up their options after they saw ratings spike over on Wheel of Fortune after American Idol’s Ryan Seacrest took over the helm.

‘Jeopardy! higher-ups reportedly aren’t completely all-in for Ken,’ the publication said.

‘Rather than have Ken host the spinoff game show series Pop Culture Jeopardy!, they tapped Saturday Night Live star Colin Jost to fill the position.’

Ken has fronted Jeopardy! since season 41 after previous host Mayim Bialik was fired in 2023.