Annoy or offend someone, as in Calling him a tightwad really ruffled his feathers. This term alludes to the stiffened, upright feathers of an angry bird. [Mid-1800s]
ruffle someone's feathers
| Idioms: ruffle someone's feathers |
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 | rub the wrong way (Idiom) |
| feather (Idiom) |
Help us answer these
 | How do you say why ruffle feathers in hebrew? |
| Why do birds try to keep warm in the winter by ruffling up their feathers? |
| What does it mean when the hens feathers are always ruffled? |
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 | Idioms. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more |
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