Jemandem auf den Keks gehen
Meaning: To get on someone's nerves.
Language: German
Literally: To go on someone's biscuit
Category: Food & Drink
Origin: Modern German slang in which 'Keks' jokingly means the head, so getting on it means grating on someone.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Casser les pieds à quelqu'un — literally: To break someone's feet
- Hindi: नाक में दम करना (naak mein dam karna) — literally: To put breath into someone's nose
More idioms — Food & Drink
- Estar frito — To be fed up or worn out.
- Tener la sartén por el mango — To be the one in control.
- Седьмая вода на киселе (Sed'maya voda na kisele) — A very distant relative.
- 누워서 떡 먹기 (nuwoseo tteok meokgi) — An extremely easy task.
- 호박이 넝쿨째 굴러 들어왔다 (Hobagi neongkuljjae gulleo deureowatda) — Unexpected great fortune fell into your lap.
- Een appeltje voor de dorst — Savings put by for hard times.
More German idioms
- Einen Kater haben — To have a hangover.
- die Nase voll haben — To be fed up or exhausted by something.
- Dampf ablassen — To release pent-up emotion or frustration.
- Salz in die Wunde streuen — To deliberately make someone's pain or humiliation worse.
- die Suppe versalzen — To ruin a plan or situation through careless excess.
- vor den Kopf stoßen — To offend or affront someone.
From our compliments & insults
- Schlauberger — A know-it-all smartass who never misses a chance to show off their cleverness.
- Dickkopf — A pig-headed, unyielding person — their skull is so thick no new idea can penetrate it.
- Du bist nicht die hellste Kerze auf der Torte — You're a little dim — not the smartest in the room.