🗓️ Idiom: Kick the Can Down the Road (v)
💬 Meaning
- To delay dealing with a problem or decision.
- It means avoiding action now and leaving the issue for later.
🧠 Example Sentences
- The leadership team kicked the can down the road instead of addressing the staffing shortage.
- We can’t keep kicking the can down the road, we need to fix the budgeting issue now.
- Delaying the system upgrade is just kicking the can down the road.
🏛️ Origin
This idiom likely comes from a simple children’s game of kicking a can instead of picking it up. In business, it refers to avoiding or postponing a decision or responsibility.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
By postponing the software update again, they were just __________.
Answer
kicking the can down the road
2. Choose the correct meaning of “kick the can down the road”:
A) To make a quick decision
B) To fix a problem permanently
C) To delay action or avoid solving a problem
D) To celebrate project success
Answer
C) To delay action or avoid solving a problem
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“They avoided making a tough decision about the project.” → Change the sentence using: kick the can down the road
Answer
They kicked the can down the road on the project decision.
ℹ️ Other Useful Pages
Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
