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to get back on track

to get back on track

62 3.4
Start working normally again after a problem or distraction
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : retomar el rumbo
  • We have an opportunity to get back on track here.
  • help get back on track
  • get the economy back on track

For the US to get back on track, they would have to slash spending.

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Examples

  • The team held a meeting to discuss how they could get back on track after the recent project delays.

  • For the US to get back on track, they would have to slash spending.

  • Do you have any advice as how I can get my life back on track or am I too far gone?

  • It's our last chance to get back on track!

  • We're getting back on track.

  • It's going to take time for you to get your life back on track.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • All she wanted was to get through the crisis and get her life back on track.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • The next day, I woke up resolved to get my life back on track.

  • So it's been a busy couple of weeks, you know, just trying to get back on track with things, trying to get back in a good mental state.

  • It's only now, six years later, that he's finally got his credit rating back on track.

    Blog text (13)

Synonyms

to recover
vsto get back on track
748 2.5

Get back to a normal state after a loss, for example health or money

is narrower and focused on restoring correct action and normal state after distractions
to resume
vsto get back on track
297 3.1

To start an activity again after a pause

focuses on restoring the correct course and normal state after problems
to return to muttons
vsto get back on track
9.9

To go back to the main topic or task after a distraction

is broader, restoring correct course of action and normal state after problems

Antonyms

51 5.8

To change direction or move away from a planned route

To move away from the planned route or plan because something pushes it

How On-Track

to get back on track
62 3.4
to refocus
23 3.9

Surface Forms

get back on track infinitive
got back on track past participle
getting back on track present participle
gets back on track third person singular

Morphology

get + back + on + track

The parts 'get' (reach/obtain), 'back' (return), and the locative phrase 'on track' (on the correct path) combine in a straightforward, compositional way: to return to the correct path or state. This motion/location metaphor (returning to a track) is common cross‑linguistically and follows normal English particle+prepositional patterns, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents is likely to infer the meaning.

Etymology

Get back on track may come from trains: if a train leaves the rails it is off course, and workers must put it back on the track. So the phrase now means 'to return to the right plan or a normal state' after a problem or distraction.