control freak
- noun
- /kənˈtroʊl frik/
- Offensive
- I think if you're an obsessive control freak like me, it's hard advice to swallow.
- called a control freak
- a bit of a control freak
- become a control freak
You're talking to the biggest type A control freak perfectionist ever.
- You're talking to the biggest type A control freak perfectionist ever.
- I am a micromanager, control freak, and I am proud of it.
- OK, terrible, terrible fit because I'm a control freak.
- Would you say that you're a control freak?
- You're like a, a, a, an excellent, like control freak after my own heart.
- That's holding them back from going to that next level because they are control freaks.
- And I think the warning sign isn't he just has really he just has a bunch of control freaks in the White House.
- I, I realized, as I mentioned, I was terrible at being an uptight control freak.
- I see these rock star agents that are incredible what they do, but they're also incredible control freaks.
- Now this super control freak guy is now blurting stuff out as a result of my mirror, my technique that he did not mean to say.
- The traits I've seen in most successful people that I've worked for, whatever industry it might be, often are that they're extremely detail oriented and they're control freaks.
Examples
-
That woman is a control freak, and she needs to let go and let me do my job.
-
I'm a control freak and you know what the worst part of it is?
-
In any event, how much of a control freak is Joe?
Academic text (2009) -
And I totally understand about the control freak letting go part.
Blog text (23) -
My mom's a total control freak.
-
When I'm in a relationship I'm a complete and utter control freak.
-
You're talking to the biggest type A control freak perfectionist ever.
-
I'm a control freak.
-
He's a control freak.
-
My boss is such a control freak; she wants to be involved in every little decision we make.
Synonyms
A person who tries to control others and make all important decisions
A person who tries to control others in a group
Antonyms
How Controlling
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is compositional: 'control' names the thing being sought and 'freak' denotes someone overly enthusiastic or obsessed, so a learner who knows both words can readily infer 'a person obsessively wanting control.' The '[noun] freak' pattern is common and predictable, making the expression immediately comprehensible to B1 learners who know the constituents.
Etymology
Control freak comes from a simple image: someone who will not let go of control and who 'freaks' — gets very upset — if things are not exactly as they want. So, control freak now means 'a person who needs to control everything', often too much.