to act like a horse's ass
- idiom
- Offensive
:
hacer el imbécil
- She was embarrassed when he started to act like a horse's ass in front of her friends.
Examples
-
He tends to act like a horse's ass when he drinks too much at parties.
-
Don't act like a horse's ass during the meeting; it's important to be professional.
-
If you love me, Ralph, you won't act like a horse's ass, and you'll get into the spirit of an anniversary evening.
Fiction book (2001)
Synonyms
42
4.1
Act in a way that makes you look silly or embarrassed
9
8.4
To behave rudely or meanly toward other people
7
8.5
To act in a way that makes you look foolish in front of others
3
8.0
To behave in a silly or embarrassing way to get attention
1
9.9
Behave rudely and selfishly, ignoring other people's feelings
1
9.9
Act in a rude, foolish way that annoys or upsets other people
1
9.9
To behave in a silly or clumsy way
1
9.9
To behave in a rude, stupid way
1
9.9
To act rudely and annoy other people
Behave in a very rude and insulting way to other people
Behave in a very rude and thoughtless way that upsets other people
To behave very rudely and make other people angry or upset
Act in a rude, unkind way toward other people
To behave in a rude and hurtful way to other people
To behave rudely and arrogantly toward other people
Behave rudely and selfishly and annoy other people
Behave in a rude and stupid way
Behave in a rude, annoying, and foolish way toward other people
To behave in a rude and annoying way
To behave in a very foolish and rude way
To act in a rude, annoying way that other people dislike
To act in a rude and unhelpful way
To treat other people rudely and think only about yourself
To behave loudly and show off to impress other people in an annoying way
To behave in a silly, rude way and break rules
To behave rudely or foolishly in a way that annoys others
To behave foolishly or clumsily
To behave in a silly, awkward way that looks foolish
Behave in a silly, clumsy way
To behave in a silly and immature way
Behave in a silly, clumsy way to make people laugh at you
To behave in a rude and annoying way
To behave in a rude or foolish way that annoys other people
To behave in a silly or annoying way
Behave in a silly or foolish way
How Rude
- Offensive
- Offensive
9
8.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
act + like + a + horse's + ass
The phrase is directly compositional: 'act' (behave) + 'like' (similar to) + 'a horse's ass' (an insulting label for a stupid or obnoxious person). A B1 learner who knows 'ass' in the derogatory sense and the other constituents can infer the intended meaning (with 'horse's' serving as an emphatic modifier), and similar animal-based insults exist cross-linguistically, supporting immediate comprehensibility.
Etymology
Act like a horse's ass shows a simple picture: someone behaving like a rude horse's ass, stubborn and loud. That's why it means 'to behave foolishly or rudely'.