40 biggest ‘icks’ revealed by people who have dumped their partner

Wearing socks in bed, mispronouncing David Bowie's name and clapping when an airplane lands make the list.

Watch: If you clap when planes land, your partner might break up with you

Dirty or long fingernails, using a “baby voice” and terrible tattoos are just some of the so-called 'icks' cited by people who have dumped their partners.

A new poll of 2,000 adults found that half of respondents (49%) have broken up with their partner because of an ick.

Around 12% of respondents said they have broken up with someone because they were obsessed with star signs, while 11% said they got the ick when their partner clapped when a plane landed.

Read more: What your star sign says about your sex life, according to an astrologist

One in 10 men claimed they would call it quits with someone who wanted to share food on a first date, while 14% of women polled by American dating site Seeking said a major turn off would be their partner referring to a football team they support as “we”.

Barefoot female and male feet in socks in bed as socks revealed to be a dating turn-off. (Getty Images)
A survey has revealed people's biggest icks - including bad teeth and putting on a baby voice. (Getty Images)

“People are very set on what they want, which is empowering,” Seeking’s dating expert Emma Hathorn said.

“Online dating has opened up a whole new world of singles, which means people can afford to have higher standards. And if an absolute deal-breaker for you is someone who never wears sunglasses indoors or chews with their mouth open, that’s absolutely fair enough.”

The biggest ick noted by respondents was someone who smelled bad, or pretending to be more knowledgeable about something than they really were.

Read more: Dolly Parton reveals how she's kept her marriage strong for 56 years

Two thirds of respondents said they were “picky” when it comes to dating, while 22% admitted they were “very picky”.

Two out of five of the respondents believe their dating standards have gotten higher as they have gotten older, with 60% admitting they would judge a first date location if it didn’t match their standards.

A man checks his breath in the mirror - bad breath was named as one of the biggest icks people have in a new survey
Bad breath was named as one of the biggest icks. (Getty Images)

A quarter of respondents (28%) said that salary is the most important thing when it comes to looking for a potential partner, while 19% value a good fashion sense over everything else.

“The current trend in dating at the moment is ‘dating up’ - finding someone who can better and elevate their own lifestyle,” Hathorn added.

Read more: Why we want to have more sex when it’s cold outside

“So, the goal for all singletons is to not only be someone who can help someone else ‘date up’ - but find someone who can elevate themselves at the same time. As with all things in life, it’s about finding that exact balance that works for you, and this can be tricky if you are totally inflexible in who you date.

“Keeping an open mind is key, and you may find someone who elevates your life in every way possible - even if they wear terrible shoes.”

40 things that give people the “ick”

  1. Smelling bad

  2. Pretending to be more knowledgeable about something than they actually are

  3. Being overbearing and rude

  4. Double texting (sending a secondary text if you’ve not responded after the first one)

  5. Having bad teeth

  6. Being rude to a waiter

  7. Living in a mess

  8. Having dirty fingernails

  9. Chewing with their mouth open

  10. Being too clingy

  11. Talking too loud

  12. Eating and talking at the same time

  13. Being obsessed with their star signs

  14. Having long fingernails

  15. Putting on a baby voice

  16. Wearing too much make-up

  17. Breathing heavily

  18. Oversharing on social media

  19. Referring to themselves in third person

  20. Having a bad tattoo

  21. Wearing a weird coloured lipstick

  22. Having shoes that are too dirty

  23. Having an Instagram account for their pet

  24. Referring to their football team as 'we'

  25. Clapping when an airplane lands

  26. Wearing bad jeans

  27. Wearing sunglasses indoors

  28. Taking longer than you to get ready

  29. Having too many shirt buttons undone

  30. Wearing shoes you don’t like

  31. Living at home with parents

  32. Not wearing socks with shoes

  33. Wanting to share food on the first date

  34. Wearing a tacky watch

  35. Using emojis in texts

  36. Wearing socks to bed

  37. Not paying on the first date

  38. Wearing creased clothes

  39. Saying pet names like ‘honey’ or ‘baby’

  40. Pronouncing David Bowie’s name wrong

Additional reporting by SWNS.