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Glite Dictionary
to see red

to see red

10 6.8
To become very angry suddenly
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : enfurecerse
  • You're so full of rage that you just saw red when you found them together.
  • make you see red
  • start seeing red
  • just seeing red

People lose their mind and get angry and they see red and they're like, man, screw that person.

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Examples

  • He tends to see red whenever discussions about politics arise.

  • When I see red, the claws come out.

    The Chateau Meroux (2011)

  • And, yeah, I saw red.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • Had to leave the room before I saw red.

    Blog text (24)

  • From that moment on, I just see red, and the next thing I know, hell breaks loose.

    Blog text (10)

  • I can't think about him without seeing red.

    The Awful Truth (1937)

  • I'm sorry, but... dishonesty always makes me see red.

    North to Alaska (1960)

  • Curt recoiled, and for a moment he saw red.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • Honestly, I see red when people pronounce those words wrongly in my presence... total rage.

    Blog text (1)

  • When I see red, it's hard for me to control my anger.

Synonyms

to explode
vsto see red
187 3.5

To suddenly show a strong feeling, often anger

is sudden anger but not necessarily expressed as forcefully
to rage
vsto see red
84 4.8

To feel very angry and unable to control it

is sudden fury but can imply a shorter sudden onset
to go ballistic
vsto see red
  • Informal
22 7.5

Suddenly become very angry

is sudden fury but can be less extreme or calmer
to blow up
vsto see red
  • Informal
16 4.7

To suddenly become very angry and lose control

is sudden fury but may be less about outward expression
to have a fit
vsto see red
  • Informal
16 5.3

To suddenly become very angry or upset and show it strongly

is sudden fury but can be more about inner feeling
to throw a fit
vsto see red
  • Informal
12 6.1

To suddenly become very angry or upset in a loud, obvious way

is sudden fury but may be less theatrical or obvious
to fly off the handle
vsto see red
  • Informal
11 6.8

To suddenly become very angry

is sudden fury but not always noisy or outwardly dramatic
to fly off
vsto see red
  • Informal
7 5.3

To suddenly get very angry without warning

is sudden fury but sometimes implies quicker onset
to hit the roof
vsto see red
  • Informal
4 6.7

To suddenly become very angry

is sudden fury but may be slightly milder in intensity
to combust
vsto see red
4 8.2

To become suddenly very angry and lose control

is sudden fury but is more literal emotional change
to hit the ceiling
vsto see red
  • Informal
3 6.8

To suddenly get very angry

is sudden fury but may be more expected or private
to blow one's stack
vsto see red
  • Informal
2 8.6

Suddenly get very angry and show it

is sudden anger but can be less extreme or loud
to blow a fuse
vsto see red
  • Informal
1 7.4

To suddenly become very angry

is sudden anger but less about total loss of control
to pop off
vsto see red
  • Informal
1 8.1

To suddenly say something angry without warning

is sudden fury but often focuses on feeling rather than speech
to go off on one
vsto see red
  • UK
1 9.9

To suddenly get very angry and speak loudly for a long time

is sudden fury but usually not prolonged speech or ranting
to blow one's top
vsto see red
  • Informal
8.0

To suddenly become very angry

is sudden fury but not necessarily visible as an outburst
to burst a blood vessel
vsto see red
  • Informal
6.9

To become very angry or upset in a way people notice

is sudden fury but may be less physically dramatic
to flip the bitch switch
vsto see red
  • Offensive
9.9

To suddenly become very angry and behave in a mean way

is sudden fury but not necessarily aggressive or confrontational
to radge
vsto see red
  • UK
9.9

To become very angry or upset

is sudden fury but presented in neutral general English
to radge over
vsto see red
  • UK
9.9

Get very angry or upset about small things

is sudden fury but not tied to small triggers

Antonyms

to calm down
  • Informal
594 1.4

To become less angry, excited, or upset

to keep it together
  • Informal
27 5.4

To stay calm and control your feelings in a difficult situation

How Angry

enraged
4.1
furious
238 3.0
to see red
  • Informal
10 6.8
annoyed
77 1.0

Surface Forms

see red infinitive
seeing red present participle
sees red third person singular
saw red past
seen red past participle

Morphology

see + red

The sense 'to become suddenly very angry' is not a direct, compositional reading of 'see' (to perceive) + 'red' (the colour); it depends on a metaphorical link between the colour red and anger and a non-literal use of 'see' meaning 'experience/become'. This metaphorical extension exists in some languages but is not fully predictable for a B1 learner who only knows the literal word meanings, so partial knowledge of the parts may help but prior exposure is likely needed.

Etymology

See red comes from the simple image of a person's face turning bright red when they get very 'angry'. So, to see red means to suddenly feel very 'angry'.