What it means
To drive someone up the wall is to annoy them so much they feel ready to lose it. It's what you say when a noise, habit, or person keeps pecking at your nerves till you can't sit with it anymore.
Usage examples
"Their dog barks at every passing leaf and it is driving the whole street up the wall by now."
"That dripping tap drives me up the wall, I can hear it from the bedroom at three in the morning."
"The kids singing the same advert jingle on a loop will drive you up the wall by hour two."
"My neighbour's car alarm kept chirping all night and it drove me up the wall."
"He's not even shouting, it's that constant pen-clicking that's driving me up the wall."
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Where it comes from
This idiom is well established in modern English and is recorded from the early 20th century. The image is dead simple and that's why it sticks. Someone gets so irritated they feel like scaling the walls. It turns everyday annoyance into a full-body little meltdown, which is exactly the vibe.
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