Learn 20 Interesting Frustration Expressions

These expressions are used to convey annoyance or exasperation. Discover 20 idioms and phrasal verbs that express frustration.

Frustration Expressions

1. Hit the roof
   Meaning: Become extremely angry or annoyed
   Example: He hit the roof when he found out.
2. Blow a fuse
   Meaning: Lose one’s temper
   Example: She blew a fuse when she saw the mess.
3. Lose one’s cool
   Meaning: Become angry or lose composure
   Example: He lost his cool during the argument.
4. Throw in the towel
   Meaning: Give up due to frustration
   Example: After several failures, he threw in the towel.
5. Go up in smoke
   Meaning: Fail or disappear completely
   Example: All his plans went up in smoke.
6. Bent out of shape
   Meaning: Annoyed or upset
   Example: He got bent out of shape over the delays.
7. Bite someone’s head off
   Meaning: Respond angrily and unreasonably
   Example: Don’t bite my head off for asking!
8. At one’s wit’s end
   Meaning: So frustrated that one doesn’t know what to do
   Example: She was at her wit’s end trying to fix the problem.
9. Get on someone’s nerves
   Meaning: Annoy or irritate someone
   Example: His loud music gets on my nerves.
10. Run out of patience
    Meaning: No longer able to tolerate something
    Example: He ran out of patience with the constant delays.
11. Blow one’s top
    Meaning: Become extremely angry
    Example: She blew her top when her laptop crashed.
12. Drive up the wall
    Meaning: Make someone very annoyed
    Example: Her constant complaining drives me up the wall.
13. Have had it up to here
    Meaning: Reach the limit of tolerance
    Example: I’ve had it up to here with his excuses!
14. Kick oneself
    Meaning: Regret a foolish action
    Example: He kicked himself for not applying earlier.
15. Go bananas
    Meaning: Become extremely angry or excited
    Example: The fans went bananas after the game.
16. Tear one’s hair out
    Meaning: Feel extreme frustration
    Example: She was tearing her hair out over the missed deadline.
17. Lose one’s temper
    Meaning: Become very angry
    Example: He lost his temper when he heard the bad news.
18. Bang one’s head against the wall
    Meaning: Keep trying despite frustration
    Example: He felt like he was banging his head against the wall.
19. At the end of one’s tether
    Meaning: Reach the limit of patience
    Example: She’s at the end of her tether with the paperwork.
20. Fly off the handle
    Meaning: Become suddenly and uncontrollably angry
    Example: He flew off the handle when criticized.