While some idioms are usually clear, some are just so complex that we can’t tell what they mean by just reading the words.
In some cases, the words are used metaphorically and we can easily interpret the message that the idiom is meant to be passed.
However, some ones are just too complex and you have to know the origin of the idiom or just know what it is meant to mean.
If you are heard to know the meaning of ‘Grind my Gears’, you have come to the right place. This article has been prepared just for you.
You will not only be learning the meaning and usage of ‘Grind my Gears’ but also 20 other idioms and phrases that are similar in one way or the other.
What is the Meaning When Someone Says “Grinds My Gears”
When a person says something grinds his or her gears, it means something is slowly getting him or her angry. The phrase was coined from motor cars and the grinding of gears which is very annoying to some people.
‘Grind my Gears’ can be translated as ‘annoys’ or ‘irritates’. Therefore, you can say ‘the baby’s persistent cry really grinds my Gears’.
20 Similar Phrases to “Grinds My Gears”
- Turn off
- Make someone crossed
- Fire someone up
- Make someone angry
- Get under someone’s skin
- Shot in the arm
- Rile someone up
- Drive someone mad
- Rub someone up the wrong way
- Get on someone’s nerves
- Get someone’s goat
- Try someone’s patience
- Make someone’s blood boil
- Get on someone’s wick
- Get in someone’s hair
- Flip someone’s lid
- Foam at the mouth
- Get someone up in arms
- Flea in someone’s ears
- Drive someone up a wall.
Turn off
Instead of saying something grinds your gears, you can say it turns you off. This is a moderate way of expressing your annoyance towards something.
When you say something grinds your gears, it could mean two different things.
You may be referring to actual anger. You are just pissed about whatever the subject of the matter is. It could also be referring to the feeling of nausea that you get from really irritating things.
There is that mild anger and discomfort you feel. It is usually called ‘turn off’. It can make you suddenly uninterested in doing something.
This is a phrase that is often used when talking about sensual intercourse. A ‘turn on’ is something that arouses the desire to get the bedplay over with.
A ‘turn off’ is the direct opposite. It refers to anything that can take your arousal down the drain.
Make someone angry
This is another mild way to say something grinds your gears. You can use this option if you only feel slightly angry over something. It is almost the same as saying ‘upset’ but ‘upset’ is even milder.
When you say you are upset, there are no outbursts and it is often because there is no one to blame. You can be crossed with a person or crossed about a thing.
When you say this, you are saying you are angry even if you are not showing it aggressively.
Fire someone up
When you get someone fired up, it can mean two things. You can also get a thing or an engine fired up. In that case, it means you are putting it to work.
First, you can say you are fired up when you are aroused or ready to do something. It encompasses confidence, vibrancy, and readiness to put yourself into action.
The second meaning is about anger. When you fire someone up, you are getting him or her really annoyed and it may even be shown aggressively.
Saying someone is fired up, in this context, means that the person is extremely angry and is venting.
Make someone angry
You can use the simplest English if you don’t think your listener will understand what you mean by ‘Grind my Gears’.
As mentioned earlier, there are several idioms that can be interpreted from just thinking for a few seconds about the metaphoric use of the words.
However, this particular idiom can only be guessed by someone who is used to cars and the annoying situation of grinding gears.
You can simply say that something or someone is making you angry. It doesn’t mention your level of anger. You can say this and still be looking calm.
You can also say this and be seriously venting your anger.
Get under someone’s skin
This is another way to say something is getting you angry. The sound of grinding gears is very irritating. The anger starts slowly till you can’t take it anymore.
Saying that something gets under your skin means two things. It is often used to mean anger but it actually refers to discomfort.
In a situation of discomfort, anger is inevitable so we can say it is also very correct to say this idiom means anger.
When you say a thing or a person is getting under your skin, you are saying you are not angry for nothing. You are irritated by a person or a thing and you are getting angry about it.
Shot in the arm
This may be the opposite of all we’ve been talking about. It doesn’t portray the meaning of ‘grind my gears’ but we can consider it a similar idiom since it’s more like an antonym and it also deals with provocation. Also, this is a noun phrase.
When you say something is a shot in the arm, you are implying that the thing is a boost for your confidence. It makes you happier and more willing to do something. Better still, we can say it is a ‘turn on’.
Rile someone up
When you rile someone up, you get the person angry. You can say ‘rile up’ or ‘wind up’. The two phrases mean the same thing as ‘grind my gears’
When you say this, you would be referring to something or someone that provokes you.
Drive someone mad
Madness sounds extreme but that is the point of this idiom. When you say a person is mad, it doesn’t necessarily mean he or she has gone insane or lost his or her mind. The word may also refer to anger.
When a person claims to be mad at you or at another person, he or she is simply talking about anger.
When you say something or someone drives you mad, it can mean two things. It may mean that the thing is getting you angry and you want to react because the feeling is extreme.
It may also mean that the thing is messing with your mind and you are getting frustrated. While this is still some sort of anger, you may actually be feeling crazy and just tired.
Rub someone up the wrong way
When you say something is rubbing you up the wrong way, you are implying that it is slowly getting you angry. This does not refer to angry outbursts but It may lead to outbursts.
This refers to a slow development of the feeling of irritation. You don’t like something or what a person is doing to you but you are still enduring it, even though it’s making you uncomfortable and angry.
If it continues, you may just react angrily.
Get on someone’s nerves
This is a popular idiom with the same meaning. Everyone already knows what this one means so you can say this instead of saying something ‘grinds your gears’.
That way, the person will understand what you mean and you don’t have to explain the idiom. The process of explaining the idiom can just alleviate your anger. No one wants that without proper justice.
When something gets on your nerves, it makes you angry. When something is ‘getting’ on your nerves, it is slowly pissing you off. When you are getting in someone’s nerves, you are making him or her angry.
Get someone’s goat
If you are looking for a different way to say something grinds your gears, you can simply say it gets your goat.
However, it depends on why you want a different idiom with the same meaning. If you want to say something that will be easily understood by your listener, this may not be the correct option for you.
No one can tell that taking your goat means ‘anger’. No one will even think of anger after hearing goat.
When you say something gets your goat, you are implying that it irritates you. It gets you angry.
Try someone’s patience
This is a sweet synonym for ‘grind my gears’. It has basically the same meaning and it will be easily understood. If that is the reason you want a similar phrase, this one is recommended.
When something tries your patience, it slowly irritates you. You are already feeling angry about it and you are only enduring it, hoping it will stop. That is where ‘patience’ comes from
It means you are holding back your anger but you are directly saying you may not stay patient for so long if the provocation continues.
This phrase is mostly used for people but it is also correct to refer to things with this.
Make someone’s blood boil
This sounds extreme and that is the point of the phrase. You are saying that something or someone is making you angry.
However, you are not just angry about it. You are extremely angry about it. The ‘extreme’ is emphasized. You are either about to vent your anger or you are doing it already.
When you say someone makes your blood boil, it can serve as a warning so the listener stops provoking you before you get too angry to control yourself.
Get on someone’s wick
This is almost the same as saying ‘get on someone’s nerves’. Asides from the one-word difference, the two idioms are totally the same thing.
While this particular idiom is not very popular, there is still a high chance that your listener will understand you immediately you say this.
Virtually everyone knows what it means when you say something is getting on your nerves. When you say something is getting on your wick, it should bring up the idea of the other idiom.
Also, your expression or the situation of things should help them in guessing correctly.
Get in someone’s hair
When something gets in your hair, it makes you feel uncomfortable and you try to get it out. You may not feel so uncomfortable about it but you just want it out of your hair.
When it gets tangled in your hair, you start to feel yourself getting angry. That is the idea behind this phrase.
When you say this, you are implying that something is making you feel uncomfortable and it’s getting you angry.
Flip someone’s lid
You can consider the lid as a cover over your pot of anger. When something takes the lid off, there is nothing holding back your anger. That is the idea behind this idiom.
You are implying that something is annoying enough to make you act aggressively. When you flip a person’s lid off, you provoked the person to extreme anger.
Foam at the mouth
This is also called ‘Froth at the mouth’. When you foam at the mouth, you vent angrily. The idea behind this idiom was gotten from the normal reaction in which a person starts talking endlessly and angrily about something.
You can say that something always makes you froth at the mouth. That means it makes you lose control all the time.
Get someone up in arms
When you are up in arms, you have gotten to the peak of your anger and you are protesting uninhibitedly about your provocation.
When something gets you up in arms, it provokes you greatly.
Flea in someone’s ears
You have probably heard this or ‘pain in the ass’. This refers to the discomfort of the provocation, rather than the feeling of anger. However, discomfort can also lead to anger.
You can say that a thing or a person is being a flee in your ears.
Drive someone up a wall
When something drives you up a wall, it has pushed you to a point where you have to push back.
You have held your patience long enough and it has made you infuriated already so you are ready to react aggressively.