Meanings
- idiomaticNot immediate; inactive; receiving or requiring less than full or regular attention.
That project is on the back burner until we deal with higher priorities.
1 more example
After some years sweating on the back burner of show business, Ms. Brier, 28, has found instant success on the social media platform of the moment, TikTok.
2023 March 14, Alexandra Jacobs, “Your Annoying Roommate Is Slaying on TikTok”, in The New York TimesAntonyms: on the front burner
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseNot immediate; inactive; receiving or requiring less than full or regular attention.
Translations
Dutch op een laag pitje
- op een laag pitjenot immediate
Finnish hautumassa, hyllyllä
- hautumassanot immediate
- hyllyllänot immediate
French au second plan, en veilleuse
- au second plannot immediate
- en veilleusenot immediate
- en attentenot immediate
- en pausenot immediate
German auf der Wartebank, auf Sparflamme
- auf der Wartebanknot immediate
- auf Sparflammenot immediate
Italian in secondo piano
- in secondo pianonot immediate
Polish na drugi plan
- na drugi plannot immediate
Portuguese em banho-maria
- em banho-marianot immediate
Spanish en segundo plano
- en segundo planonot immediate
Swedish på sparlåga
- på sparlåganot immediate
Cite this entry
on the back burner. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20back%20burner
“on the back burner.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20back%20burner. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “on the back burner,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20back%20burner.
Source: on the back burner on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.