dar rabia
verbCEFR B1
What does “dar rabia” mean in English?
to be infuriating that, to make angry that
to be infuriating that, to make angry that (me da rabia que + subjunctive — gustar-type)
Example sentences
Me da una rabia enorme que después de tanto esfuerzo todavía no hayan reconocido su trabajo.
It infuriates me that after so much effort they still haven't recognised his work.
¿A ti no te da rabia que siempre sea el mismo quien tenga que quedarse a limpiar al final?
Doesn't it make you angry that it's always the same person who has to stay behind to clean up at the end?
Le daba mucha rabia que sus ideas fueran ignoradas en las reuniones del departamento.
It made him very angry that his ideas were ignored in the department meetings.
How to use it
Dar rabia (que) means 'to make (someone) angry' or 'to be infuriating that'. It follows the same gustar-type pattern as dar pena: 'Me da rabia que siempre llegues tarde'. The indirect object shows who is angered; the que-clause (with subjunctive) is the grammatical subject. The expression is colloquial but widespread across all Spanish-speaking regions. Register alternatives: molestar (neutral) or enfurecer (formal).
Common mistake
Like all gustar-type verbs, the subject of the sentence is the que-clause (or the noun causing anger), not the person feeling it. The experiencer goes in the indirect object position: me/te/le/nos/os/les da rabia. The que-clause always triggers subjunctive. Rabia in this expression means anger — not 'rabies' (which it also means in a medical context).