If someone said, “The event was on March 5th but we moved it back.” Is the new date before or after March 5th? You have no other context.
Definitely after
Absolutely after
It depends. Was it originally on March 2nd and they changed it to March 5th at some point? Because in that case, I’d expected it to be before - March 2nd, specifically.
Otherwise, I’d assume they mean “pushed it back” and that it was after.
I would assume the person means “after.”
Rescheduling to an earlier date would be moving it “forward.”
If the date is moved to an earlier date, it’s commonly said “we moved it up”. If the date moves to a later date, it’s commonly said “we moved it out”. I agree that “moved it back” is confusing. “Back” would seem to mean the date has backed up to an earlier date (reversed). But it typically means that the date has moved to a later date. It’s kind of like the confusion around “I [could/couldn’t] care less”, where it could be interpreted in different ways.
I agree that (a) “moving it back” means moving to a later date, and (b) it’s confusing because you’re moving the date in the same direction as time flows, so in what sense it is “moving back”? Terms like “moving up” or moving “out” are much clearer, but clearer still is “rescheduled to [a later date]”.
Without context I would think that the event was moved back to a previously scheduled date, whether that first date was earlier or later than the second scheduled date. Say if the date had originally been on March 4, it was changed to March 5, but then it was moved back-- back to March 4.
This is why context is important, especially for time-based sentences. “The meetings will occur bi-weekly”. Does that mean twice a week, or every two weeks?
I can see it in the sense of “moving it back, farther away from the present moment.”
Yes, I agree
Interesting. I’m English and have never heard ‘out’ - always ‘back’.
Moved it back means it’s happening at a later date.
Moved it up means it’s happening sooner.
Edit: I have never heard moved it “out.” I would have no idea what that meant.
“Moved it forward” would have the same connotation. I agree that “moved it back” means moving to a later date, but it’s counterintuitive because you’re moving an event forward in the direction that time flows, not backward.
To my way of thinking, “move it forward” would suggest “moving it closer to the present moment.” I don’t know if my way of thinking is typical, but it would seem to me that these expressions are ambiguous at best.
I think my approach, if I were announcing that an event had been rescheduled, would be to just say, “We’ve rescheduled it for a week later, and now it’s going to be on March 12.”
After. But I can see where someone speaking of an historical event might mean the other way. “After further research, scholars have moved the reign of Pharaoh Bob VII back to the 12th Century BC from the 11th Century BC…”
I understand it to mean it’s happening at a later date but it makes no actual sense to my brain. I’ve just learned from context that it means pushing the date forward.
What about “set it out?” Meaning, set it for a later date.
Same for me, for the reasons I stated.
You’ve never heard an expression like “we can’t make Mar 2, let’s move it out to Mar 16”? I hear this all the time!
Nope never. At least not that I can remember. It’s definitely not a standard term. Perhaps it’s just a Canadian thing. For events at least, sure I’ve heard that in other contexts, like to move a physical thing out of the way.
“Set it out” at least where I am in America would mean to put a physical thing out on display, like on a table. Never for a date.
The frustrating thing is that not only can we interpret it either way, it can be expressed to mean either way, and now it’s doubly confusing.