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Hot under the collar

Idiomatic Phrase
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An idiomatic phrase describing anger, irritation, or embarrassment manifesting physically; clothing-metaphor conveying heated emotion in verse, linking internal state to external sensation through sartorial discomfort and thermal imagery.

Detailed Definition
Hot under the collar means irritated, angry, embarrassed, or emotionally heated, often in a way that remains socially restrained. In poetry, the idiom is useful because the collar suggests clothing, respectability, and the body’s attempt to contain feeling. Anger or shame rises beneath the surface of decorum. It can appear in comic, social, romantic, or satirical poems, especially where manners conceal agitation. A poet may use it to show the physical signs of emotion leaking through civilised appearance.
Example
Example in poetry:
A comic poem might show the proud gardener hot under the collar when his roses lose first prize; In satire, a critic becomes hot under the collar after one sharp couplet; The phrase hot under the collar means visibly annoyed or angry; A poet can use it to show emotion through bodily heat and embarrassment.
Additional Notes
Hot under the collar means angry, flustered, embarrassed, or indignant. The phrase locates emotion in the body and clothing: heat gathers at the neck, where speech, breath, and social restraint meet. In poetry, it suits scenes of argument, shame, desire, or public humiliation. It can be comic or serious. Students may notice how collars also suggest class, uniform, formality, and the pressure of maintaining appearances.
Also Known As
angry
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