Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun countable A burner of a stove away from the cook's side.
  • noun uncountable A state of being postponed, deferred or given lower priority (from the sense that pots on backburners get less attention).

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From back +‎ burner.

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Examples

  • Ticking over on the backburner is Riven Kingdom, which I will get back to on Tuesday, provided I have in fact finished proofing the galleys by Monday night.

    And today went where, exactly???? karenmiller 2007

  • The later comment "Sometimes a student can get frustrated over a teacher's crits and question their knowledge and expertise -- if people knew what teachers were capable of early on, this line of thinking would be in the backburner" is fine - but what evidence does a portfolio show?

    Speak Up � A Teacher�s Point of View Jonathan 2004

  • The later comment "Sometimes a student can get frustrated over a teacher's crits and question their knowledge and expertise -- if people knew what teachers were capable of early on, this line of thinking would be in the backburner" is fine - but what evidence does a portfolio show?

    Archive 2004-06-01 Jonathan 2004

  • Another recommendation of note that has been put on the backburner is the development of a deep and liquid corporate debt market.

    Deepak Parekh: The Power Of Execution 2010

  • I cannot count the number of times I put Jesus on the "backburner" for something I considered more important.

    The Loneliness of Jesus Belinda 2007

  • It becomes a weird sort-of "backburner" achievement.

    Kill Ten Rats Ravious 2010

  • It becomes a weird sort-of "backburner" achievement.

    Kill Ten Rats Ravious 2010

  • ..& ant1...even if you 'backburner' those 12yr olds for 4 full years, you know, 'til they're like legal maybe, yer still gonna be a bit of a sic fuk...

    Slick and Attired: Wearing Whatever You Want BikeSnobNYC 2008

  • However, as marriage went backburner amidst the gubernatorial campaign, Queer Rising spent its spring chasing down New York archbishop Timothy Dolan for his open stances degrading gay marriage and its summer vacations in D.C., chained to the White House gate -- then to each other in a DC jail -- until Don't Ask, Don't Tell was repealed last fall.

    Adrian Margaret Brune: The New Gay Guerrillas Adrian Margaret Brune 2011

  • However, as marriage went backburner amidst the gubernatorial campaign, Queer Rising spent its spring chasing down New York archbishop Timothy Dolan for his open stances degrading gay marriage and its summer vacations in D.C., chained to the White House gate -- then to each other in a DC jail -- until Don't Ask, Don't Tell was repealed last fall.

    Adrian Margaret Brune: The New Gay Guerrillas Adrian Margaret Brune 2011

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