Back to the drawing board means you have to start all over again. An idea, a project or a plan has failed, and you need to come up with a new version. The image helps you remember it: a drawing board is the board designers use to draw plans, so the work goes back to the planning stage. The idiom is conversational; in an essay, write rethink the plan.
When would you say back to the drawing board?
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(it's) back to the drawing board; go back to the drawing board; send + something + back to the drawing board
- The client rejected all three logos, so it's back to the drawing board for our design team.
- My first essay plan didn't answer the question, so I went back to the drawing board.
- The new bus timetable caused chaos and was sent back to the drawing board.
What changed
First versionInvestors didn't like our plan, so it's back to drawing board.
RevisionInvestors didn't like our plan, so it's back to the drawing board.
The article may feel unnecessary, but it is required in this idiom: back to the drawing board. The only change is the added the.
Back to square one means returning to the starting point after everything you have done has been lost: The deal fell through, and we're back to square one. Back to the drawing board stresses something else: you need to come up with a new plan. Often both expressions fit the same situation.
Your turn
The tests showed that the app was too slow, so the developers went back to the ___ board.
Show the answer
drawing — The app failed the tests, and the developers had to find a new solution: went back to the drawing board. A blackboard is the board in a school classroom, and it has no place in this idiom.
Think of a plan you had to redo from scratch. Write what the plan was and why it didn't work.
My plan to save money by cooking at home failed because I worked late every day, so I went back to the drawing board.
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