pushing someone's buttons

A form of push someone's buttons — To do specific things to anger someone (or, less commonly, to sexually arouse or otherwise elicit a strong reaction from them), especially intentionally or maliciously.

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Meanings

verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of push someone's buttons
Cite this entry
APA

pushing someone's buttons. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pushing%20someone's%20buttons

MLA

“pushing someone's buttons.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pushing%20someone's%20buttons. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pushing someone's buttons,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pushing%20someone's%20buttons.

Source: pushing someone's buttons on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.