live rent-free in someone's head
(chiefly, US, informal, idiomatic) To be the perpetual focus of someone's thoughts, with that person having no control over this situation.
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Born ~1918 · no dated citations yetDefinitions
(chiefly, US, informal, idiomatic) To be the perpetual focus of someone's thoughts, with that person having no control over this situation.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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Semantically related
- living rent free84%
When something occupies your thoughts constantly without your permission — a song, a memory, or something embarrassing you did in 2014. "That jingle has been living rent free in my head for three days." Used for anything that squats in your brain unpaid.
- pay the rent61%
(idiomatic) Of a job or profession, to provide enough income for someone to afford a place to live.
- rentoid56%
(Internet slang, humorous, derogatory) One who rents property, especially one seen as lazy and pathetic.
- no thoughts, head empty56%
A self-deprecating admission of temporary mental blankness. Often paired with a picture of a cute animal or a mundane photo. "Just stared at the fridge for 10 minutes. No thoughts, head empty." The honest reply when someone asks what you're doing and the answer is nothing.
- live rough56%
(chiefly, British, idiomatic) To live and sleep outdoors or in a rough or makeshift shelter, not having a proper home or abode.