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up vote 3 down vote favorite

Which is the most appropriate/correct usage?

  • Are you angry on me?
  • Are you angry with me?
  • Are you angry at me?
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I've never heard "angry on me" before. – Urbycoz Sep 29 '11 at 9:41
Nor I; it seems rare according to ngrams and except for a brief rise in usage ca. 1780, is less commonly used than angry about, to, or for. – jwpat7 Sep 29 '11 at 14:45

2 Answers

up vote 6 down vote accepted

I have never heard the phrase "angry on" used before.

Regarding the other two, I would say that it depends upon the context.

If directed at a person "angry with" should always be used.

e.g. I was very angry with her.

If directed at a situation I believe "angry at" would also be acceptable.

e.g. I was very angry at how rainy it was.

The key is who the anger is aimed at. "Angry at" is not really aimed at anyone.

So in the example you give, "Are you angry with me?" is correct.

Not sure how much use Google NGrams is here. It does at least show that "angry on" is used very rarely:

enter image description here

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2  
It could even be angry on is a literal translation from, for example, Dutch. "Boos zijn op" lit. "being angry on". – Zsub Sep 29 '11 at 10:20
I'm surprised "angry at" got so many hits. If my anger is directed towards something other than a person, I'd say "angry about" or "angry that." – onomatomaniak Sep 29 '11 at 11:46
This NGram suggests angry at [someone] has gained currency is US usage over recent decades (there's no such increase on the British side). I can't help feeling this is down to conflation with mad at [someone], as noted in @Andrew Vit's answer. – FumbleFingers Sep 29 '11 at 17:24
1  
One of my asian friends uses "angry on" quite frequently, which I always thought was totally weird. Thanks for such a detailed answer. I am changing my acceptance to your answer. – Bailey Oct 3 '11 at 5:01
up vote 2 down vote

The second one:

Are you angry with me?

is correct. Curiously, we also say "are you mad at me?" which can cause some confusion.

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protected by RegDwighт♦ Mar 15 at 10:51

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