go against the grain
CulturalExample Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"It's because these films are so beautiful, so unique and so strong that they sometimes go against the grain," said Binoche.
From Barron's • Feb. 15, 2026
We should nurture them as an occasionally irresponsible group that can go against the grain of society and pronounce hard truths.
From Salon • Nov. 1, 2025
The leaders of the so-called men's conferences have been polygamists - seen by some as people who go against the grain, against societal pressures, to do what they want to do.
From BBC • Feb. 14, 2024
But as long as food waste is a significant contributor to climate change, I will go against the grain, so to speak, to make an impact and hope my oddball ways catch on.
From Washington Post • Apr. 20, 2023
He had to learn verses of the Bible for his father, which used to go against the grain, until at last, instead of being "a wicked boy," he took up religion on his own account.
From Mystic London: or, Phases of occult life in the metropolis by Davies, Charles Maurice
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.