can kicker

noun

Someone or something who is can kicking or who kicks the can down the road. I.e. someone or something who is adept at delaying things, putting off a difficult issue or decision, typically on a continual basis. For example, 'The US and Europe should be glad to be led by a bunch of can-kickers'.

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Meanings

nouncan kicker (plural can kickers)

plural can kickers

  1. Someone or something who is can kicking or who kicks the can down the road. I.e. someone or something who is adept at delaying things, putting off a difficult issue or decision, typically on a continual basis. For example, 'The US and Europe should be glad to be led by a bunch of can-kickers'.

Origin

Can kicking attested as an activity of idle urban youths since the late 19th century. Modern sense of "procrastinate" dates from the 1980s.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

can kicker. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/can%20kicker

MLA

“can kicker.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/can%20kicker. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “can kicker,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/can%20kicker.

Source: can kicker on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.