ENGLISH
REFERENCE

shift the dial

idiom
Meaning

To make a significant change or impact in a particular situation or context.


Examples
SIMPLE

We need new ideas to shift the dial on sales.

CONTEXTUAL

The new marketing campaign failed to shift the dial, so the company decided to change its strategy entirely.

COMPLEX

Despite the implementation of several minor policy adjustments, the committee struggled to shift the dial on the persistent issue of urban poverty.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    dial back

    To reduce (one's energy or intensity); to restrain (a feeling or action).

  2. 02

    dial down

    To reduce or diminish in effect or intensity.

  3. 03

    dial towards

    To be oriented towards, to be figuratively moving in the direction of or aiming at a conclusion.

  4. 04

    pocket dial

    A situation in which one's cellphone makes a call from one's pocket when its buttons are inadvertently pressed.

  5. 05

    put a shift in

    To work hard; to make an effort

  6. 06

    reset the dial

    To change something radically; to reform or revolutionize something.

  7. 07

    seismic shift

    A fundamental reorientation of a state of affairs.

  8. 08

    shift gears

    To change pace or mode of operation.

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