get into someone's head

Definitions

1. To understand someone's thoughts or feelings.
   intransitive
2. To have a negative impact on someone's confidence or performance; to throw someone off their game.
   intransitive

Examples

“Yet unlike many of Jackson’s supporters, he would not label⟳ his fellow senators racist. “I’m not going to try⟳ to get⟳ into the head of my colleagues to understand⟳ what’s motivating them. It’s a fool’s errand,” he told me.”

“Even more incredibly, he defended it last⟳ month, brushing aside the formidable world No 1, Michael van Gerwen, in the process⟳. The Dutchman, still overwhelmingly the man to beat⟳, firmly denies the upstart challenger has got into his head. Which is probably an admission that he has, a little bit.”

“Just two days after Durant suggested the Celtics got into his head, forced him to overthink and even second-guess his own⟳ capabilities, the Nets’ star appeared significantly more sure of his actions with the season on the line.”

“The Open⟳ is the only Grand Slam tournament where women use⟳ different balls than men, and the Wilson ‘regular-duty’ ball has gotten into some players’ heads.”

CEFR level