English Explanatory Dictionary

rub someone the wrong way

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To bother, disturb, irritate, or annoy.

Pronunciation

En-au-rub someone the wrong way.ogg

Word forms

rub someone the wrong way rubs someone the wrong way rubbing someone the wrong way rubbed someone the wrong way

Etymology

From the negative reaction of a cat to being stroked contrary to the direction its fur lies.

Synonyms

chap someone's hide raise someone's hackles aggravate annoy nettle rankle ruffle sting antagonize bother disgruntle botherate bug get grate burn up bedevil cheese off devil exasperate frustrate get up grotch hack off hassle irk irritate jazz molest mommick nark nerve pee off peeve persecute pique piss off provoke rile rile up roil storm test someone's patience tick off trouble try one's patience vex wind up Idioms: boil someone's piss get on someone's nerves get on someone's tits get on someone's wick get someone's back up get someone's dander up get someone's goat get someone's Irish up get someone's nanny get someone's nanny-goat get under one's goat

Related words

rub someone the right way rub up the wrong way take the wrong way
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on R Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary