make waves

English

Etymology

Derived from disruptions caused by waves in water.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Verb

make waves (third-person singular simple present makes waves, present participle making waves, simple past and past participle made waves)

1. (idiomatic) To cause a disturbance.
2. (idiomatic) To upset the status quo.
3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see make,‎ wave.

Synonyms

• (upset the status quo): rock the boat; see also Thesaurus:nonconform

Translations

To cause a disturbance

Finnish: aiheuttaa kuohuntaa French: faire des vagues (fr) Russian: причиня́ть беспоко́йство impf (pričinjátʹ bespokójstvo), наруша́ть споко́йствие impf (narušátʹ spokójstvije) Spanish: malmeter (es), malquistar (es)

To upset the status quo

Spanish: hacer olas, causar ondas

See also

• ruffle some feathers