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I've seen the expression "neck tingle" used in the context of enjoying a good song. Is this a similar expression to "goose bumps"? If not, what would be the difference in use?

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The main difference is if you say "That song gives me goose bumps", most people will think you're speaking normal English. If you say "That song gives me neck tingle", they'll still understand you (as meaning exactly the same thing), but they probably won't think you're speaking normal English. – FumbleFingers May 11 '12 at 22:31
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I’m with @FumbleFingers: I’ve never heard “neck tingle” in my life. The only alternate for “goose bumps” I can think of is “frisson” (pronounced either [fʁi(ˈ)sɔ̃] or with greater assimilation, [fɹɨˈsoʊn]). – tchrist May 11 '12 at 22:38
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@tchrist, yahoo301503: But it's commonplace to say things like "It made the hairs on my neck tingle", so even if we've never heard "neck tingle" used as a standalone noun before, we'd all understand the reference. Whatever - if the question isn't "General Reference", it's "Too Localised". – FumbleFingers May 11 '12 at 22:47
This question raises my hackles. – MT_Head May 12 '12 at 21:33
This question could be improved by adding whatever you found when you tried to research the question before posting it. That's basic site etiquette. If you were reading this blog post, then the expression is defined in context, in the first paragraph. If you weren't ... it is anyway. – MετάEd Sep 11 '12 at 21:12

closed as too localized by FumbleFingers, tchrist, kiamlaluno, MετάEd, Matt Эллен Sep 20 '12 at 9:41

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1 Answer

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This sounds like the forming of a noun from a longer phrase, a relatively common practise in slang.

"It made (the hairs on the back of) my neck tingle" is a common phrase for something that is either exciting or frightful. This is sometimes expressed as an adjective or adverb phrase: neck-tingling or neck-tingly good, for example. Both of these are very much non-standard but might be used in sensationalist description, like music reviews.

From there, it's a fairly short step to "neck tingle" as a noun: 'It gave me a neck tingle', perhaps.

Another, much more established, example of this adaptation is 'bone-chilling' to describe something that chills the bones, either because it is scary or literally cold.

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