1. Home
2. Idioms
3. pain in the neck

pain in the neck

---

---

pain in the neck

A person or thing that is extremely annoying or inconvenient. Getting boxes in and out of the attic is a real pain in the neck.

See also: neck, pain

pain in the neck

Fig. a bother; an annoyance. This assignment is a pain in the neck. Your little brother is a pain in the neck.

See also: neck, pain

pain in the neck

Also, pain in the ass or butt . A source of annoyance, a nuisance, as in Joan is a real pain in the neck, with her constant complaining, or Jack told his brother to stop being a pain in the ass. The first of these colloquial expressions dates from about 1900 and originated as a euphemism for the two less polite variants.

See also: neck, pain

pain in the neck

n. a difficult or annoying thing or person. (see also pain in the ass.) My boss is a pain in the neck.

See also: neck, pain