Raise One’s Hackles, To 🦔
raise one’s hackles, to – To arouse one’s anger. The hackles are the hair on the back of an animal’s neck that sticks straight up with excitement, fear, or other strong emotion. “With the hackles up,” meaning on the point of fighting, was transferred to humans in the late nineteenth century. “I almost saw the hackles of a good old squire rise,” wrote Edward Pennell-Elmhirst (The Cream of Leicestershire, 1883).
Synonyms 🤔
- Ruffle someone’s feathers
- Get under one’s skin
- Drive up the wall
- Boil one’s blood
- Put someone’s back up
- Push someone’s buttons
Antonyms 🙃
- Calm down
- Soothe
- Pacify
- Appease
- Mollify
- Placate
Similar and Related Terms 🔗
- Ruffle someone’s feathers: Literally means to disturb; figuratively can mean to irritate or upset.
- Get under one’s skin: Means to irritate someone; originally from the idea of a pervasive annoyance.
- Push someone’s buttons: Specifying deliberate actions taken to annoy or anger another.
Proverbs and Quotes 📚
Proverb: “Barking dogs seldom bite.” – This suggests someone angry doesn’t often act on it except shout or growl.
Quote: “She had a way of raising the hackles on even the most serene saints.” – Likely from an oft-overwhelmed soul.
Literature, Songs, and Movies 📖🎵🎥
Literature:
- “Wuthering Heights” by Emily Brontë – Heathcliff can raise plenty of hackles in this brooding classic.
- “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen – Mr. Darcy initially raises Elizabeth Bennet’s hackles quite a bit.
Songs:
- “You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon – Nothing raises hackles more than perceived vanity.
- “I’m Still Standing” by Elton John – Reflects the kind of resilience that would refuse to let raised hackles get them down.
Movies:
- “The Devil Wears Prada” – A boss designed to raise hackles aplenty.
- “Matilda” – Miss Trunchbull has the unrivaled ability to raise everyone’s hackles.
Here’s a token thought to leave you knitting your brows but in a thoughtful way:
“Certain moments are likeliest to raise one’s hackles not for their ferocity, but for their precise ability to teach patience and resilience.”
Signed off adroitly thanks to our inherently gleeful language enthusiast,
E. L. Expressions 🍃 Published: October 2023
