You probably have an opinion on the sound of “nails on a chalkboard.” But since chalkboards aren’t exactly common in 2025, outside of trendy coffeeshops, what’s something else with the same vibe?
Someone asked the internet, “What’s a sound you hear that instantly makes you angry for no logical reason?” The most popular responses include:
1. Styrofoam rubbing on Styrofoam, “This makes my teeth and brain hurt.”
2. Microwaves that keep beeping after you have opened the door.
3. The chirp of a dying battery in a smoke detector.
4. The Microsoft Teams alert, “The sound of an incoming Teams call puts me in fight or flight.”
5. Smacking when eating.
6. When a fork scrapes a plate.
7. Snoring . . . “Even the quietest of snoring just instantly sets me on edge.”
8. That “Oh no no no no no” song on Tik Tok . . . “It’s been FOUR [EXPLETIVE] YEARS, the trend is long dead. STOP USING IT.”
9. A cat about to barf, or a dog licking its crotch.
10. “Cotton Eye Joe”, “Where did you come from, where did you go?”
11. Children, screaming, shrieking, crying, whining, and so on.
12. Hearing “bruh.”
13. The sound of someone rummaging through their purse that is full of way too much stuff and receipts.
14. The sound of flip-flops flip-flopping past my office door. (This comment is from “SoccerLegs2002,” who’s potentially a modern-day Edgar Allan Poe.)
