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Glite Dictionary
to yank someone's chain

to yank someone's chain

1 8.7
Tease someone to make them react
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : tomar el pelo a alguien
  • If you think I'm serious, you're yanking my chain.

Examples

Synonyms

to tease
vsto yank someone's chain
245 1.9

To make fun of someone in a way that annoys them

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction
to pick
vsto yank someone's chain
165 4.8

To start a fight or argument by annoying someone

is more general annoyance aimed at a reaction rather than starting fights
to provoke
vsto yank someone's chain
144 3.6

Annoy someone again and again to make them react

is about teasing or annoying often to cause a response
to taunt
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Offensive
93 5.8

To mock someone again and again to make them angry or upset

is about annoying someone to get a reaction rather than long abuse
to get a rise out of
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
8 6.8

Make someone angry or annoyed on purpose by teasing them

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction
to needle
vsto yank someone's chain
8 7.7

To annoy someone by teasing them repeatedly

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction
to bust my chops
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
7 9.3

To tease or criticize someone in a friendly way

is similar but focuses on provoking a reaction through annoyance
to push someone's buttons
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
1 7.1

To do or say something on purpose to annoy someone

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction not only anger
to tantalize
vsto yank someone's chain
1 8.2

To tease someone with repeated mean or mocking remarks

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction rather than temptation
to rattle the cage
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
1 7.8

To do or say something on purpose to upset someone and see their reaction

is about annoying someone mainly to cause a personal reaction
to bust someone's chops
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
1 9.0

To tease or nag someone, often in a playful way

is used for persistent annoyance intended to cause a reaction
to pull someone's leg
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Informal
1 4.1

To tell someone something that is not true to make them laugh

is about annoying someone to cause a reaction rather than playful tricking
to break someone's chops
vsto yank someone's chain
  • Archaic
8.7

To tease or nag someone in a way that annoys them

is similar but usually aims to annoy to get a response
to put up someone's back
vsto yank someone's chain
  • UK
8.9

To annoy someone so they become defensive

is about annoying someone often to cause a reaction rather than mere irritation
to rebait
vsto yank someone's chain
9.3

Try to make someone react again by saying something to annoy them

is about annoying someone to cause a first reaction rather than repeat attempts

Antonyms

to please
216 1.0

To make someone happy or satisfied

How Teasing

taunt
  • Offensive
19 5.4
mock
  • Offensive
27 5.5
to yank someone's chain
  • Informal
1 8.7
to tease
245 1.9
to poke fun at
  • Offensive
23 3.4

Surface Forms

yank someone's chain infinitive
yanked someone's chain past
yanked someone's chain past participle
yanking someone's chain present participle
yanks someone's chain third person singular

Morphology

yank + someone's + chain

The literal meanings of 'yank' (to pull quickly) and 'chain' (a physical object or metaphorical constraint) point to a physical pulling action but do not directly yield the specific sense 'to tease or provoke someone.' The idiomatic reading depends on a metaphorical extension and cultural usage that a B1 learner who only knows the constituents would unlikely infer reliably, so the expression is partially but not fully transparent.

Etymology

Yank someone's chain may come from a simple picture: someone grabbing and pulling a chain or a dog's chain to make the person or animal jump. So to yank someone's chain came to mean 'to tease' or 'annoy' someone to get a reaction.