Meaning of Idiom “Talking to a Brick Wall”
If talking to someone is like talking to a brick wall, they are not listening to you or are ignoring you.
The idiom talking to a brick wall is used when someone does not listen to your advice, ideas, warnings, explanations, instructions, etc. It alludes to speaking to a person or group of people as being as useless as speaking to an inanimate object. Other objects can stand in for a brick wall, especially a tree.
The expression is often preceded by like, but other words or phrases can be used to introduce the simile:
“I may (might) as well be talking to a brick wall.”
“It was as if I was talking to a brick wall.”
“It’s just like talking to a brick wall.”
This can be omitted altogether, e.g. “I’m talking to a brick wall. You never listen.”
Sentence Examples
“It’s no use. Talking to you is like talking to a brick wall. You’re going to do whatever you want and damn the consequences.”
“I warned him that if he moved to the city on his own, he wouldn’t be able to afford a place to live, let alone food but it was like talking to a brick wall. He was back home in a month.”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you all day but all you can do is stare at your phone. I may as well be talking to a brick wall.”
“I don’t know why you’re bothering to try to get through to him. You might as well be talking to a brick wall.”
“Good luck on that, brother. I meet them on my job every day. Trying to get through to them is like talking to a brick wall.” — Get on the Bus (1996)
“Why does nobody follow my orders? Oh, why am I talking to a brick wall? Who’s in charge here? Tell me who’s in charge?” — Closer to the Moon (2014)
“You know, it’s like she ain’t even heard you in the first place. It’s like talking to a brick wall.” — Family Guy: Meg and Quagmire (2012)
Origin
This idiom has been used since at least the late 1800s. It alludes to the futility of trying to communicate with an inanimate object. A brick wall is an especially rich since such a wall is not only incapable of listening, it is immovable and immutable; a solid barrier that nothing, it seems, can penetrate, including the sound of one’s voice.