To put something on the back burner is to give it a lower priority or to delay giving it attention or working on it. Something that is on the back burner is not forgotten, it is simply a lower priority than other things.
It is possible to refer to something “being on the back burner“, but this idiom is often used with put, as in “put something on the back burner.”
The idiom can also be used as a verb or an adjective. A project or issue can be back-burnered or it can be referred to as a back-burner project or issue.
Putting something on the front burner is the opposite of putting it on the back burner, but the latter is much more commonly used.
Origin of “Back Burner”
This idiom has a culinary origin but, contrary to popular claim, it does not refer to old-fashioned wood-fired stoves but to modern stove-tops, which have front and back burners. A cook will place items which need less attention, stirring, etc. on the back burner while paying more attention to those on the front burner.
It has been speculated that this idiom refers to old-fashioned wood or coal-burning stoves, in which the back burner was traditionally a warming burner. However, such stoves did not have burners. Although circles may have been present, the entire surface of the stove could be used and the term burner did not exist as a name for any specific cooking area.
The idiom, instead, did not come into use until the mid-1900’s, when gas ranges were on the market. Older gas stoves and modern gas or electric stoves may feature burners with several different ranges of heat, including a low-heat simmer burner, usually located in the back. Regardless of the specifics, items cooking on a back burner are usually being cooked at a lower heat or being kept warm, while other foods are being attended to on the front burner.
Movie and Television Citations
“Hey, we need to talk.” “No Stan, baby, I’m in a crunch. Could we back-burner it?” — The Faculty (1998)
“To be frank with you, if the guy doesn’t walk in the door and give himself up, I’m afraid I’m gonna have to back burner it.” — Reservation Road (2008)
“I thought it was time to get serious about the career when Amy came along, you know. It’s still on the back burner, though.” — Metroland (1998)
“You know, I’ve been thinking about time travel again.” “Why, did you hit a roadblock with invisibility?” “Put it on the back burner.” — The Big Bang Theory: The Luminous Fish Effect (2007)
“You still boxing?” “Yeah, but it’s sort of been put on the back burner for now.” — My Baby’s Daddy (2004)
“Her career as an artist did have to kind of be put on the back burner a little bit.” — Beauty Is Embarrassing (2012)
Sentence Examples
“I had to put my vacation plans on the back burner. I just have too much work to do.”
“The expansion is on the back burner for now but we plan to revisit it within the next year.”
“He always put his job on the front burner and as a result, his marriage fell apart.”
“We have to revisit these back-burner issues,” said the Councilman.