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View synonyms for against the grain

against the grain



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Idioms and Phrases

Opposed to one's inclination or preference, as in We followed the new supervisor's advice, though it went against the grain . This metaphor refers to the natural direction of the fibers in a piece of wood, called its grain ; when sawed obliquely, or “against the grain,” the wood will tend to splinter. [c. 1600] For a synonym, see rub the wrong way .

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Example Sentences

Everything he had said he stuck to; doing it, too, with a sorrowful and against-the-grain air.

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tortuous

[tawr-choo-uhs ]

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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against the clockagainst the tide