back and fill, to
back and fill
1. To move a ship's sails in an alternating fashion to accommodate the wind in a narrow channel. We need to back and fill the sails in order to pass through this channel. A: "Sir, it looks too narrow?" B: "No, we'll be OK—we'll back and fill." Back and fill the sails, men, just like that!
2. To be indecisive. You need to make a decision and stick to it—quit backing and filling! Come on, don't back and fill any longer. Pick a paint color so we can finally get this renovation wrapped up. A: "Have they picked a candidate for the job yet?" B: "Nope, they're still backing and filling."
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
back and fill
Fig. to act indecisively; to change one's direction repeatedly; to reverse one's course. (Originally nautical, referring to trimming the sails so as to alternately fill them with wind and release the wind, in order to maneuver in a narrow space.) The president spent most of his speech backing and filling on the question of taxation. The other candidate was backing and filling on every issue, depending on whom she was addressing.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
back and fill
Vacillate, be undecided, as in This measure will never be passed if the town meeting continues to back and fill. This term comes from sailing ships, where it signifies alternately backing and filling the sails, a method used when the wind is running against a ship in a narrow channel. The sail is hauled back against the wind and braced so that the tide or current carries the ship forward against the wind. Then the sail must be swung around and filled, to keep the ship on course. The term's figurative use for indecisiveness dates from the mid-1800s.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
back and fill
OLD-FASHIONEDIf someone backs and fills, they keep changing their opinion or failing to make a decision. They backed and filled for over six weeks until I told them that I would do the job myself. Note: People also talk about backing and filling to refer to this kind of behaviour. The markets are nervous, so we are likely to see some backing and filling.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
back and fill
1 go in contrary directions 2 be indecisive, temporize, vacillate. chiefly North AmericanThe expression was originally nautical: to back is to sail backwards, to fill , to sail forwards (from the notion of the wind filling the sails).
2 2003 Commonweal Even as she wants to advance boldly, therefore, she is required by the evidence to back and fill, leaving the reader with a bewildering combination of affirmation and qualification.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
back and fill
1. Nautical To maneuver a vessel in a narrow channel by adjusting the sails so as to let the wind in and out of them in alteration.
2. To vacillate in one's actions or decisions.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
back and fill, to
To temporize or vacillate. This metaphor comes from the days of sailing ships, and refers to a mode of tacking when the tide is running with a ship and the wind against it. The sails are alternately backed and filled, so that the vessel goes first back and then forward, ultimately remaining in just about the same place.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer