VocabularyBasePractice words

Meaning & use

pressing buttons

phrase·Everydayinformalfigurative

Last updated

UK/ˈpresɪŋ ˌbʌtənz/
US/ˈpresɪŋ ˌbʌtənz/

Meanings

  1. phraseidiominformalfigurative

    Deliberately saying or doing things that annoy or provoke someone, especially to get a reaction.

    Grammar: Used as a continuous activity: stop pressing my buttons; you're pressing his buttons.

    Patterns

    • press someone's buttons
    • stop pressing my buttons
    • keep pressing his buttons

    He kept pressing his brother's buttons until they started arguing.

    She knows exactly how to press my buttons when she wants a reaction.

    Stop pressing buttons and just tell me what you really think.

  2. phraseidiom

    The literal act of pushing buttons on a machine, phone, or device.

    Grammar: This literal use keeps the normal verb pattern press a button; pressing buttons describes the repeated action.

    Patterns

    • be pressing buttons
    • press a button
    • press the button

    The toddler loves pressing buttons on the remote control.

    If the screen stays black, try pressing buttons on the side of the monitor.

    He was pressing buttons on the elevator, but nothing happened.

Common combinations

press someone's buttons
Don't let him press your buttons during the meeting.
know how to press someone's buttons
My sister knows how to press my buttons.
keep pressing buttons
The kids kept pressing buttons until the machine beeped.
push someone's buttons
American English often uses push instead of press in the figurative phrase.

Synonyms and how they differ

provoke
Provoke is more formal and means to make someone angry or cause a reaction; pressing buttons is informal and suggests doing it knowingly.
annoy
Annoy simply means to make someone slightly angry; pressing buttons suggests you are doing it on purpose to get a response.
tease
Tease can be playful and friendly; pressing buttons often has a more negative, irritating tone.

Opposites

calm someone downsoothe

Word family

button noun
A small round object you press to operate a machine, or a fastener on clothing.
press verb
To push something firmly, often a button or switch.

Commonly confused: pressing buttons or pushing buttons?

pressing buttons vs pushing buttons

Pushing buttons is the American English version of the same idiom. Both are correct; pressing buttons is more common in British English.

Practice

My little cousin knows exactly how to ______ my buttons when I'm tired.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “pressing buttons”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Your sentence stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.

Explore more words