If you have noticed that your ex-boyfriend tends to stare at you then you’re probably wondering why and what it means.
This post will help you understand why he might stare at you.
So, what does it mean when your ex-boyfriend stares at you? Your ex-boyfriend staring at you could be a sign that he still likes you especially if he still tries to talk to you and if he shows other signs of attraction around you. He could also be thinking about you, trying to see if you’re still into him, he thinks you’re staring at him or he might be annoyed with you.
Since there are a number of reasons why your ex might stare at you it is important to consider the context of how he does it and the body language that he shows around you.
By doing so you’ll be able to get a better understanding of why your ex would stare at you.
Reasons why your ex would stare at you
Each of the different reasons why your ex will stare at you will likely come with a number of clues in his body language and behavior.
Below, I will mention a number of reasons why your ex will stare at you and the body language and behavior signs that you can expect to see with them.
He is still attracted to you
If he only stares at you and he changes his body language in a positive way when he sees you then it would be likely that he stares at you because he is still attracted to you.
If he is still attracted to you then it would be likely that he would show signs of still being attracted to you in his body language and behavior when he is around you.
These signs can include:
- Mirroring your body language
- Having dilated pupils when you are around
- Becoming anxious when you are with other men your age and sticking around while you are
- Pointing his feet at you
- Quickly looking away or smiling when you notice him staring at you
- A lack of negative signs such as squinting at you, crossing his arms, having tight lips, tensing the jaw or tightening the eyebrows when looking at you
- Laughing and looking to see if you are laughing as well
- Sitting upright when he sees you
- Uncrossing his arms and legs when he sees you
- Adjusting his hair or clothing when he sees you
- Positioning himself to be near you
He is thinking about you
The reason that he stares at you could be that he is thinking about you in some way.
The reasons that he might be thinking about you could be that he is wondering what you are doing now and how you are getting on without him.
If that is the case then it would be more likely that he would have a more neutral appearing body language when looking at you and that he wouldn’t show many signs of attraction unless he’s still attracted to you.
He is trying to see if you are still into him
The reason that he stares at you might be that he is trying to see whether or not you are still into him.
If that is the case then he might do other things to find out whether or not you are still into him such as asking your friends whether or not you have been talking about him.
He thinks that you’re staring at him
The reason that he stares at you could actually be that he thinks that you are staring at him.
This would be more likely to be the reason if he has caught you looking at him yourself in the past.
It would also be likely that he would show some signs of anxiousness when looking at you by doing things such as:
- Fidgeting
- Rubbing his arms, face, neck or legs
- Tapping his fingers and feet
- Talking at a higher pitch
- Talking less
- Crossing his arms and legs
- Slouching
He’s annoyed with you
The reason that he stares at you could be that he is annoyed with you.
This would be more likely to be the reason if the pair of you had a bad breakup.
If he is annoyed with you then it would be likely that he would show other signs of being annoyed with you in his body language and behavior by doing this such as:
- Crossing his arms and legs
- Squinting at you
- Pointing his feet away from you
- Avoiding talking to you
- Having tight lips when looking at you
- Tightening the eyebrows when looking at you
- Tensing his jaw when looking at you
Consider how he reacts to seeing you
When trying to understand how your ex feels about you it would be helpful to consider the way that he reacts to seeing you.
If he noticeably changes his body language when he sees you then it would be a strong sign that he still has good or bad feelings towards you.
If he reacts by sitting upright, uncrossing his arms and legs, adjusting his hair or clothing, his pupils dilate, he doesn’t show negative signs, he raises his eyebrows and smiles, he points his feet at you or he positions himself to be nearer to you then it would be likely that he is still attracted to you.
Whereas, if he reacts by crossing his arms, squinting, tightening his lips, pointing his feet away from you, positioning himself to be further away from you and he tenses his jaw then it would be more likely that he has negative feelings towards you.
Consider multiple aspects of his body language
When trying to understand your ex’s body language it is important to consider multiple aspects of his body language at a time.
He might show one particular body language sign for a number of different reasons making it hard to reliably figure out how he’s feeling based on one body language sign.
Whereas, if he shows multiple body language signs that can all mean the same thing then it would be much more likely that he is showing them for that reason.
It’s also important to consider how it deviates from his normal body language. It could be the case that he naturally shows certain body language signs which would usually mean something else but since he shows them naturally it wouldn’t mean anything other than that he is feeling normal.
Consider how he interacts with other people
When trying to understand how your ex feels about you it would also be helpful to consider how he interacts with other people.
If he shows the same body language and behavior around you that he does around other people then it would be more likely that he has neutral feelings towards you.
Whereas, if he shows different body language and behavior when he is around you compared to when he is around other people then it would be more likely that he has positive or negative feelings towards you. It would be necessary to consider whether or not he changes his body language in a positive or a negative way when he is around you.
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.