Go back to the drawing board

Definition

To start over completely with a new plan or approach after the current one has failed. It means abandoning the current strategy and beginning fresh with the planning process.

Etymology

This phrase originated in the 1940s from a cartoon by Peter Arno in The New Yorker magazine, showing a military aircraft designer walking away from a crashed plane saying this line. The 'drawing board' refers to the drafting tables where engineers and architects would create their technical drawings and blueprints.

Kelly Says

What's remarkable is how quickly this phrase moved from a single cartoon caption to universal usage within just a decade. The visual of literally returning to where designs are created on paper resonated so strongly that it became the standard metaphor for starting over in any field, not just engineering or design.

Translations

AMአማርኛ
ወደ ስክሰት ቦርድ መለስ
weh-deh seh-ke-seht BOHRD meh-LEH-s
ARالعربية
العودة إلى لوح الرسم
al-ʿawdah ʾilā lawḥ ar-rasm
BNবাংলা
আঁকার বোর্ডে ফিরে যাওয়া
aṅkāra bōrḍē phire yāōyā
CACatalà
tornar a la taula de dibuix
tohr-NAHR ah lah TAH-oo-lah deh dee-BWEE-ks
CSČeština
vrátit se k výkresové desce
VRAH-tit seh k VEE-kreh-soh-veh DEH-seh
DADansk
gå tilbage til tegnebrættet
GOH til-bah-geh til TEH-neh-breh-teht
DEDeutsch
zurück an die Zeichenwand
TSUHR-uk ahn dee TSAI-ken-vahnt
ELΕλληνικά
επιστρέφω στο σχέδιο
eh-pee-STREH-foh sto SKEH-dee-oh
ESEspañol
volver al tablero de dibujo
bohl-VEHR ahl tah-BLEH-roh deh DEE-bwoh
FAفارسی
بازگشت به تخته نقاشی
bāz-gasht be takhte naqāši
FISuomi
palata piirustuslaudalle
PAH-lah-tah pee-roo-stus-lah-oo-dah-leh
FRFrançais
revenir au tableau
ruh-vuh-NEER oh tah-BLOH
GUGU
ડ્રોઇંગ બોર્ડ પર પાછા જવું
ḍroīṅ bōrḍ par pāchā javuṁ
HAHA
komawa zuwa bakan aiki
koh-MAH-wah zoo-wah bah-KAHN ah-KEE
HEעברית
לחזור ללוח הרישום
LA-kh-ZOHR la-LOO-akh ha-ree-SHOOM
HIहिन्दी
ड्रॉइंग बोर्ड पर वापस जाना
ḍroīṅ bōrḍ par vāpas jānā
HUMagyar
visszamenni a rajzasztalhoz
VEE-sah-meh-nee ah RAH-yah-sah-stahl-hohz
IDBahasa Indonesia
kembali ke papan gambar
KEHM-bah-lee keh PAH-pahn GAH-mbah
IGIG
laghachi na bọọdụ na-ese ihe
LAH-gah-chee nah boh-oh-doo nah-eh-seh EE-heh
ITItaliano
tornare al tavolo da disegno
tohr-NAH-reh ahl tah-VOH-loh dah dee-ZEH-nyoh
KKKK
сурет жүргізу тақтасына қайту
soo-reht zhur-gee-zoo tahk-tah-sah-nah KAH-ytoo
KMKM
ត្រឡប់ទៅកាន់ក្តារគូរ
tralab tao kan kdaar koor
MRMR
रेखाटनाच्या पट्ट्यावर परत येणे
rekhāṭanācyā paṭṭyāvara paraṭ yaṇē
MSBahasa Melayu
kembali ke papan lukisan
KEHM-bah-lee keh PAH-pahn LOO-kee-sahn
MYမြန်မာ
ပုံဆွဲစာမျက်နှာသို့ ပြန်လာခြင်း
poun sweh zah myeh hnaa thweh pyan lah hkyin
NLNederlands
terug naar het tekenbord
TEHR-uk NAH-r het TEH-ken-bohrd
NONorsk
gå tilbake til tegnebordet
GOH til-bah-keh til TEH-neh-bohr-deht
PAPA
ਡਰਾਇੰਗ ਬੋਰਡ ਤੇ ਪਰਤ ਜਾਣਾ
ḍarāʾiṅ bōrḍ te paraṭ jāṇā
PLPolski
wrócić do deski kreślarskiej
VROH-tcheech do DES-kee KRESH-lar-skyeh
PTPortuguês
voltar à prancheta
vohl-TAHR ah prahn-SHEH-tah
RORomână
a reveni la tabla de desenat
ah reh-VEH-nee lah TAH-blah deh deh-SEH-nat
RUРусский
вернуться к чертежной доске
vehr-NOOT-syah k CHEHR-tyezh-noy DOH-skeh
SVSvenska
gå tillbaka till ritbordet
YOH til-bah-kah til REET-bohr-deht
SWKiswahili
kurudi kwenye bamba la kuchora
koo-ROO-dee kwenye BAHM-bah lah koo-CHOH-rah
TAதமிழ்
வரைபடத்திற்குத் திரும்புதல்
varai-paṭattiṟku-t tirumpu-tal
TEతెలుగు
గీత బోర్డుకు తిరిగి వెళ్ళడం
gīta bōrḍu-ku tirigi veḷḷaḍaṁ
THไทย
กลับไปที่กระดานวาดภาพ
klap pai thi kradan waad pahp
TLTL
bumalik sa drawing board
BOO-mah-leek sah DRAH-ying BOHRD
TRTürkçe
çizim tahtasına geri dönmek
CHIH-zim tah-tah-SAH-nah GEH-ree DOH-rmehk
UKУкраїнська
повернутися до малюнка
poh-VEHR-noo-tih-syah doh MAH-lyoon-kah
URاردو
ڈرائنگ بورڈ پر واپس جانا
ḍrāʾiṅ bōrḍ par vāpas jānā
VITiếng Việt
trở lại bảng vẽ
trở lại bang vê
YOYO
páde sí àtẹ̀jáde
pah-DEH see ah-teh-JAH-deh
ZUZU
buya emathafeni wokucatsha
BOO-yah eh-mah-tah-FEH-nee woh-koo-TSAH-shah

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