# They moved it back **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 25, 2026, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956 "2026-02-25T13:20:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/1 "2026-02-25T13:20:25Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![colinfred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colinfred/32/21338_2.png) [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/2 "2026-02-25T13:21:42Z")
Definitely after ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/3 "2026-02-25T13:22:54Z")
Absolutely after ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/4 "2026-02-25T13:24:13Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/5 "2026-02-25T13:26:13Z")
I would assume the person means “after.” Rescheduling to an earlier date would be moving it “forward.” ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/6 "2026-02-25T13:31:20Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/7 "2026-02-25T13:37:49Z")
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]”. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/8 "2026-02-25T13:40:13Z")
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? ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/9 "2026-02-25T13:41:59Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > so in what sense it is “moving back”? I can see it in the sense of “moving it back, farther away from the present moment.” ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/10 "2026-02-25T14:15:32Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > 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. Yes, I agree > [@filmore](#): > > If the date moves to a later date, it’s commonly said “we moved it **out** ”. Interesting. I’m English and have never heard ‘ **out** ’ - always ‘ **back** ’. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/11 "2026-02-25T14:26:55Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/12 "2026-02-25T14:38:07Z")
> [@dirtball](#): > > > [@wolfpup](#): > > > > so in what sense it is “moving back”? > > I can see it in the sense of “moving it back, farther away from the present moment.” “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. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/13 "2026-02-25T14:51:04Z")
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.” ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/14 "2026-02-25T14:57:35Z")
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…” ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/15 "2026-02-25T17:27:18Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/16 "2026-02-25T18:49:14Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I have _never_ heard moved it “out.” I would have no idea what that meant. What about “set it out?” Meaning, set it for a later date. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/17 "2026-02-25T19:02:48Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > 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. Same for me, for the reasons I stated. > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I have _never_ heard moved it “out.” I would have no idea what that meant. 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! ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/18 "2026-02-25T22:15:18Z")
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. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/19 "2026-02-25T22:19:00Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > What about “set it out?” “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. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2026, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956/20 "2026-02-25T23:16:06Z")
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. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/they-moved-it-back/1027956.md?page=2)