kick the can down the road
Meaning: To put off dealing with a problem, leaving it for later.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “Every year the council kicks the can down the road on fixing the bridge.”
Category: Daily Life
Origin: The image is of someone walking along and nudging a can ahead instead of picking it up. The phrase became common in American political talk from the late 20th century.
Other ways to say this
- Russian: Тянуть кота за хвост (Tyanut' kota za khvost) — literally: To pull the cat by the tail
- Portuguese: Empurrar com a barriga — literally: To push with the belly
- English: drag one's feet
More idioms — Daily Life
- drop the ball — To make a mistake, especially by failing to do something one was responsible for.
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- neither here nor there — Not relevant to the matter being discussed.
- at this stage of the game — At this point in a process, usually when it is late to change things.
- get the hang of something — To learn how to do something.
- go all out — To make the greatest possible effort.
More English idioms
- away with the fairies — Daydreaming, or not quite in touch with reality.
- something is rotten in the state of Denmark — Something is seriously wrong, often something being hidden.
- the eye of the storm — The center of a crisis; sometimes a brief calm in the middle of it.
- poor as a church mouse — Extremely poor.
- at the end of the day — When everything is taken into account; in the end.
- tough luck — Said when nothing can be done about a disappointment, often without much sympathy.
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