If a guy recently called you trouble then you’re probably wondering why and what he might have meant by it.

This post will help you understand why he might have called you trouble and help you to make sense of why other guys will call you trouble in the future.

So, what does it mean when a guy calls you trouble? A guy calling you trouble might be a sign that he likes you especially if he only says it to you and if he shows other signs of attraction around you. He might also say it as a joke, to get a reaction out of you, because he thinks you’ll cause him trouble or because he was being mean in some way.

Since there are a number of reasons why a guy will call you trouble it is important to consider the context of how he said it and the body language that he shows around you.

By doing so you’ll be able to get a better understanding of why he would call you trouble.

Reasons why a guy will call you trouble

Each of the different reasons why a guy will call you trouble will likely come with a number of clues in his body language.

Below, I will show you some reasons why a guy will call you trouble and the body language signals that you can expect to see with them.

He is attracted to you

If he only calls you trouble and he tends to change his behavior and body language when he is with you then it would be likely that he is attracted to you.

Calling you trouble suggests that he might be attracted to you because it suggests that he thinks that he is developing feelings for you and that it might lead to him getting into trouble in some way.

If he is attracted to you then it would be likely that he would show signs of being attracted to you in his body language by doing things such as:

  • Mirroring your body language
  • Holding extended eye contact with you
  • Asking you lots of questions
  • Having dilated pupils when he is with you
  • Staring at you then quickly looking away when you notice
  • Standing close to you when talking to you
  • Watching you and sticking around while you’re with other men
  • Getting defensive when other men are around
  • Asking your friends about you
  • Adjusting his hair or clothing when he is with you
  • Sitting or standing with a straighter posture when he sees you
  • Pointing his feet at you when you’re in the same room
  • Showing signs of nervousness such as rubbing his arms, face, neck or legs
  • Looking at your lips when talking to you
  • Blinking more frequently
  • Talking with a deeper voice than he does with other people

He thinks that you’ll cause him to do things that he normally wouldn’t

The reason that he called you trouble could be that he thinks that you’re going to cause him to do things with you that he doesn’t normally do.

He would be more likely to say that if there are things that you normally do that he doesn’t that could be seen as something that might get him into trouble in some way.

For example, if you tend to go to a lot of parties then he might call you trouble because he thinks that you’ll make him do it as well and it will cause problems for him like drinking more than he should.

In this case, it would also be a sign that he is attracted to you since he would be more likely to do things with you that would get him into trouble if he’s attracted to you. If he is then it would be likely that he would show signs of being attracted to you in his body language.

One of you are in a relationship and he thinks hanging out will cause trouble

If one of you are in a relationship then he might call you trouble because he thinks that hanging out with you will cause one of you to cheat.

If that is the case then it would also be likely that he would show signs of being attracted to you. He might also show signs of anxiousness around you since he thinks that you might cause him to have relationship problems.

He thinks that you’ll cause him to get into trouble

If you tend to get into trouble then the reason that he said it might be because he thinks that hanging out with you will cause him to get into trouble as well.

In this case, it would be more likely that he would show some signs of trying to distance himself from you which could include:

  • Pointing his feet away from you
  • Crossing his arms and legs when you’re around
  • Avoiding eye contact with you
  • Standing far away from you
  • Positioning himself to not be near you
  • Making up excuses to avoid going out with you

He was being mean in some way

It could be the case that he called you trouble in a derogatory way.

He might have been saying that you would be a bad influence on him or he might have been implying that you’re not worth hanging out with.

If he was being mean then it would be likely that he would have shown negative body language signals which could have included:

  • Squinting at you
  • Tightening his eyebrows when looking at you
  • Tensing his jaw when with you
  • Staring at you
  • Talking to you more loudly with a deeper voice
  • Gritting his teeth
  • Crossing his arms and legs
  • Discrediting things that you say

He wanted to get a reaction out of you

The reason that he called you trouble could be that he wanted to get a reaction out of you for some reason.

It could be that he was bored and he wanted to liven up the conversation, he might have thought that you were bored and he wanted to cheer you up in some way or he might have done it because he finds you attractive and he wanted to see if you would react positively.

Consider how he reacts to seeing you

When trying to understand how he feels about you it would be helpful to consider the way that he reacts upon seeing you.

If he uncrosses his legs and arms, makes space for you, points his feet at you, raises his eyebrows and smiles, mirrors your body language, his pupils dilate, he adjusts his hair and clothing and he sits more upright when he first sees you then it would be likely that he called you trouble because he is attracted to you.

Whereas, if he avoids making space for you, squints at you, tightens his eyebrows when looking at you, tenses his jaw when looking at you, distances himself from you, crosses his arms and he points his feet away from you then it would be more likely that he doesn’t want to see you.

Consider the body language that he shows with other people

When trying to understand why he called you trouble it would be helpful to consider the way that he interacts with other people.

If he calls other people similar things and he shows the same body language around them as he does with you then it would be more likely that he says it because he wants to get a reaction out of the person.

Whereas, if he only said it to you and he changes his body language around you then it would be more likely that he is either attracted to you or he said it in a mean way. It would be necessary to consider if he shows positive or negative body language signals around you to figure out why he said it.

Think about clusters of body language

When you’re considering the type of body language that he shows around you it would be helpful to consider clusters (groups) of body language at the same time.

The reason for that is that he might show a single body language sign for a variety of different reasons.

Whereas, if he shows a number of signs in his body language that all suggest the same thing then it would be likely that he is showing them for that exact reason.

So, if he shows just one sign of attraction then it wouldn’t be enough to conclude that he is attracted to you. Whereas, if he shows a number of different signs of attraction then it would be much more likely that he is attracted to you.

Consider your relationship with him

It would also be helpful to think about the type of relationship that you have with him.

If he is your friend then it would be more likely that he called you trouble because he is developing feelings for you and he has probably been showing signs of attraction that you haven’t noticed.

If it was a guy that you don’t know very well then he might have been saying it in a mean way, he might think that you’ll cause trouble for him, he might have been attracted to you or he might have said it to get a reaction out of you. It would be necessary to think about the body language that he was showing you to get a better idea but generally it’s not going to be due to a negative reason.

Related Questions

What does it mean when a guy calls you dangerous? It could be that he is attracted to you and he thinks that spending more time with you will cause him to get into some kind of trouble. Or he might have said it in a mean way in which case it would be likely that he would show negative body language around you.

What does stay out of trouble mean? It means that the guy that said it wants you to avoid doing something that will get you into trouble.

If you want to learn more about body language, a book I would recommend would be The Definitive Book of Body Language (on Amazon). It shows you how to interpret body language and understand people's true intentions.

Author

I created and currently manage Body Language Central, one of the premier sources for body language-related knowledge. Body language plays a key role in our daily lives. I hope that my website can help condense the wide amount of body language information available and allow you to make full use of it in your daily life. You can read more about me and my website here.