on board
Joining in or participating.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Are you on board with the new plan?”
“Everyone in the department is on board with the changes to our schedule.”
“The director spent hours convincing the skeptical investors, and by the end of the meeting, they were finally on board with her ambitious vision.”
Derived from the literal wooden boards comprising the deck of a ship. The phrase entered the language as a nautical reference to being situated within the vessel itself, rather than alongside it.
- 01
back to the drawing board
Indicates that one must try a different strategy in order to achieve some goal following the failure of a recent attempt.
- 02
go back to the drawing board
To start again; to scrap a previous idea or plan and try again from the beginning.
- 03
go by the board
To fall or to go overboard; to be cast over the side of a ship.
- 04
ironing board
A flat-chested woman.
- 05
sweep the board
To win all the prizes in a competition.
Last updated August 10, 2026