Why is it normal to say "rubs me the wrong way" and "turns me off" when talking about everyday things?

1 Answer

Answer :

I remember the 60’s sort of…. The saying “Turn on, tune in, drop out…” was from LSD guru Timothy Leary. Although he talked a lot about drugs, his message was by no means exclusively about getting high and vegging one’s life away. The “Turn on” part was more about awakening to pleasure and beautiful things around you. I’ve often heard that phrase used to mean first exposure, as in: “That college art class turned me on to art forms I never realized existed!” Parts of that colloquialism have survived the 60’s and 70’s and have entered into common usage. Rubs me the wrong way always brought to mind an image of a cat. If the cat is in your lap, say, and you pet it along the direction of the fur growth, kitty will usually purr and be very contented. But if you rub (kitty) the wrong way, kitty’s reaction will not be so nice.

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