pain in the neck
11
4.1
- idiom
- /peɪn ɪn ðə nɛk/
- Informal
:
fastidio
- Why do you always have to be such a pain in the neck, hm?
Because it's a pain in the neck if your car breaks down and it's expensive to replace the car.
- Because it's a pain in the neck if your car breaks down and it's expensive to replace the car.
- So the next time you think that you're narcissistic relationship is a pain in the neck, you may not be that far from the truth.
- It's just kind of a pain in the neck, but I do I love this stuff makes your skin so soft, close, nice shave and I love it.
Examples
-
Have I been a pain in the neck lately?
Blog text (7) -
It's a royal pain in the neck
-
It's really a pain in the neck.
-
In fact he was a pain in the neck.
-
The landlord's a real pain in the neck.
-
Rudy's a pain in the neck.
-
I know he's a pain in the neck, but we just got to keep him safe till Monday.
-
But with the children, it's a pain in the neck schlepping there in the morning from here.
Blog text (5) -
Automobile emission controls and safety requirements remain a pain in the neck for car manufacturers.
Academic text (1997) -
Dealing with constant paperwork can be a real pain in the neck for the employees.
Synonyms
418
3.0
Something that causes annoyance or trouble
109
9.2
A person or thing that is very annoying and difficult to deal with
107
4.3
A thing that causes trouble or discomfort
62
3.6
A person or thing that annoys others and causes trouble
43
7.2
A person or thing that often causes trouble
29
2.1
A thing that causes trouble or annoyance
21
3.2
A person or thing that bothers you
8
8.0
A very annoying person or thing that causes trouble
1
7.4
Something that causes trouble or makes people annoyed
1
6.3
A person or thing that keeps causing trouble for someone
1
7.0
Something that keeps causing you trouble or worry
Someone or something that causes a lot of trouble and annoyance
Something that causes annoyance or trouble
A small problem that keeps annoying someone
A constant problem that annoys people and is hard to solve
Antonyms
How Annoying
- Offensive
109
9.2
- Informal
11
4.1
- Informal
1
7.4
62
3.6
21
3.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'pain' (unpleasantness) and 'in the neck' create a visible metaphor: something that causes discomfort located in the neck, which a learner can plausibly map onto someone/something that is annoying. However, the meaning is conventionalized and figurative rather than strictly compositional, so it is not fully predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Pain in the neck creates a clear image: a real pain in your neck is very uncomfortable and makes simple things harder. So, the phrase means 'an annoying or troublesome person or thing'.