to go to one's head
5
7.8
- idiom
:
subirse a la cabeza
- She was thrilled about her promotion, but I warned her not to let the success go to her head.
- let success go to his head
- success go to his head
- stardom go to his head
Examples
-
You've let college go to your head.
-
Don't let it go to your head.
-
The kid was all right, but it went to his head.
-
But boy, this win sure did go to his head.
Blog text (4) -
Finding himself sitting with the three most powerful men in France, talking to them as an equal, a Prime Minister, just went to his head.
Fiction book (1993) -
I think that crown has gone to your head.
-
Your friend sounds like she let the money go to her head a bit from how you describe her.
Blog text (22) -
Do not let your victory go to your head, Chiro.
-
Don't let it go to your head.
-
Oh, don't let it go to your head.
Synonyms
9
7.7
To become too proud because of praise, success, or power
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
go + to + one's + head
The phrase maps literally to something 'going to the head' (go + head), so a learner who knows those words could infer a metaphorical effect on the mind; however the specific sense 'become arrogant or conceited' is a conventionalized metaphor that is not fully predictable from the parts. Cross-linguistically similar metaphors (e.g. 'se le subió a la cabeza' in Spanish, 'ça lui est monté à la tête' in French) make the general idea accessible, but the precise pragmatic meaning requires prior exposure.
Etymology
Go to one's head comes from a simple picture: praise or success is like a strong drink that seems to go up into your head and makes you dizzy. That's why people use it to mean 'to become too proud'.