Meaning & use
shit stir
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Meanings
verbintransitiveinformalslangvulgar
To deliberately cause trouble or arguments between people, usually for amusement.
Grammar: No object: he likes to shit stir; the noun form is shit-stirring.
Patterns
- shit stir between people
- like to shit stir
He only said that to shit stir; don't take him seriously.
Stop shit stirring and let them sort out their own argument.
nouncountableinformalslangvulgar
An act of causing trouble or starting arguments on purpose.
Grammar: Usually written as shit-stir or shit stir; the more common noun is shit-stirring.
Patterns
- a bit of shit stir
- accuse someone of a shit stir
The whole thing was just a shit stir to get attention.
His comment was a deliberate shit stir at the family dinner.
Word forms
| third person singular | shit stirs |
|---|---|
| past tense | shit stirred |
| past participle | shit stirred |
| -ing form | shit stirring |
Common combinations
- just shit stirring
- Don't worry, he's just shit stirring.
- a bit of shit stirring
- There was a bit of shit stirring in the group chat.
- accuse someone of shit stirring
- She accused him of shit stirring at work.
- stop shit stirring
- Stop shit stirring and help us fix the problem.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stir the pot
- A milder, non-vulgar expression meaning to cause trouble or disagreement on purpose.
- cause trouble
- A neutral phrase; shit stir is much more informal and carries a strong vulgar tone.
- provoke
- Provoke means to make someone angry or react, often directly; shit stir focuses on creating conflict between others.
Opposites
Word family
- shit-stirrer noun
- A person who deliberately causes trouble or arguments.
- shit-stirring noun
- The activity of causing trouble on purpose.
Commonly confused: shit stir or shit?
shit stir vs shit
The base word is a vulgar term for feces or an exclamation of annoyance; shit stir is a separate informal expression about causing trouble.
Practice
Which sentence uses shit stir correctly?
Choose one answer.
Shit stir means to cause trouble between people, which fits sentence 1. The others use it as if it meant stirring food, driving or cleaning, which is wrong.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “shit stir”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.