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Glite Dictionary
to kick into touch

to kick into touch

8.9
To put a plan aside and often leave it without action
  • phrasal verb
  • UK
: posponer
  • After much debate, the council kicked into touch the proposal to build a new sports center.

Examples

  • The committee chose to kick into touch the expensive renovation until next year.

  • Many politicians simply kick into touch any controversial reforms instead of facing them.

  • Don't kick into touch this important project!

  • We should not kick into touch our plans for expansion.

  • After much debate, the council kicked into touch the proposal to build a new sports center.

  • The committee chose to kick into touch the expensive renovation until next year.

  • Many politicians simply kick into touch any controversial reforms instead of facing them.

Synonyms

to put on the back burner
vsto kick into touch
8 5.6

To delay dealing with something until later and make it less important

leans more toward long delay or possible abandonment rather than mere lowering of priority
to punt on
vsto kick into touch
  • Informal
2 8.2

Delay deciding about something to avoid commitment

is broader, covering both delay and possible permanent abandonment
to drop the idea
vsto kick into touch
2 3.3

To decide not to continue with a plan or suggestion

often delays or leaves plans unresolved instead of clearly ending them
to put on ice
vsto kick into touch
2 5.8

To delay a plan or project for a while

can mean postponing or abandoning the plan, often without a set restart
to punt the project
vsto kick into touch
  • Informal
8.8

Delay a project to work on more important tasks

can also mean delaying or abandoning a plan without a clear return date
to bench this idea
vsto kick into touch
  • US
7.6

Delay talking about an idea until later

often implies a longer, indefinite delay or complete abandonment instead of mere postponement
to have to punt
vsto kick into touch
  • Informal
9.2

To delay deciding for now because it is difficult or unclear

can mean the same delay but also implies the plan may be permanently dropped

Antonyms

to proceed
697 3.0

Begin or continue an action after a pause, often as planned

to implement
480 3.7

To put a plan or rule into action

How Final

to abandon
201 3.8
to cancel
742 1.0
to kick into touch
  • UK
8.9
to postpone
214 3.4
to discuss
∞ 1.6

Surface Forms

kick into touch infinitive
kicked into touch past
kicked into touch past participle
kicking into touch present participle
kicks into touch third person singular

Morphology

kick + into + touch

The sense 'to postpone or abandon' cannot be reliably derived from the literal parts 'kick' + 'into' + 'touch' — a B1 learner who knows those words would not infer the idiomatic, procedural meaning without exposure to the rugby-derived metaphor. The phrase is a language-specific idiom whose meaning depends on a cultural/sports sense of 'touch' (ball out of play), so it is not transparently compositional for most learners.

Etymology

Kick into touch comes from rugby. When a player kicks the ball into touch, they send it outside the field and play stops, so to kick into touch a plan means to 'postpone' or 'abandon' it.