to bucking for a promotion
1
6.2
- idiom
- Informal
:
luchar por un ascenso
- She has been working overtime and impressing her boss, really bucking for a promotion.
Examples
-
He is always staying late and volunteering for extra projects, clearly bucking for a promotion.
-
You got a strange way of bucking for a promotion, my friend.
-
You bucking for a promotion?
-
You know that and I know that, but... somebody's bucking for a promotion.
-
If you want to get ahead, you need to start bucking for a promotion by taking on more responsibilities.
Synonyms
731
1.5
To try hard to achieve something, especially against difficulty
9
8.2
To try hard to get praise or a promotion from someone like a boss
5
5.9
To try hard to get a higher job or more responsibility
1
3.4
To try to get a higher job at work
How Ambitious
- Informal
1
6.2
1
3.4
- Informal
7
7.7
Surface Forms
Morphology
While 'promotion' and the preposition 'for' are transparent, the verb sense of 'buck' meaning 'to strive or angle for something' is informal and not a primary, literal meaning most B1 learners know. The sense is related to 'make an effort' so there is a partial compositional link, but the colloquial construction 'buck for (a promotion)' is idiomatic enough that learners would likely need prior exposure.
Etymology
Bucking for a promotion may come from the image of an animal bucking—a horse or goat that jumps and pushes to get ahead. One popular story says people used that strong, pushing image to describe workers who try hard to move up, so the phrase means 'trying hard to get a promotion'.