to unshelve (a proposal)
- phrasal verb
- /ʌnˈʃɛlv/
- Pressure from stakeholders led the committee to unshelve the proposal that had been ignored last year.
Examples
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After several months, the board chose to unshelve the proposal and review its merits again.
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If new funding becomes available, they may unshelve the proposal and move forward with the project.
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After several months, the board chose to unshelve the proposal and review its merits again.
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If new funding becomes available, they may unshelve the proposal and move forward with the project.
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Pressure from stakeholders led the committee to unshelve the proposal that had been ignored last year.
Synonyms
To return to an idea or topic to think about it again
Put a plan back into active use after it was set aside
To suggest an idea again after people refused it
To start work again on a project that was paused or stopped
Antonyms
How Active
Surface Forms
Morphology
unshelve + (a + proposal)
The verb 'unshelve' is transparently built from the negating prefix 'un-' plus 'shelve' (to put aside/on a shelf); if a learner knows 'shelve' in the sense of setting a proposal aside, they can infer 'unshelve' as reversing that action. The phrase 'unshelve a proposal' therefore directly conveys 'bring back for reconsideration' with no idiomatic shift, so it should be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituents.
Etymology
The verb unshelve (a proposal) comes from the simple image of taking something down from a shelf after it was put away. So, to unshelve a proposal means 'to bring a plan back for discussion'.