box the compass

Idioms  

1. Make a complete turnabout or reversal, as in With a change of ownership, the editorial page boxed the compass politically, now supporting the Senator. Originally this was (and continues to be) a nautical term, meaning “repeat the 32 points of the compass in order.” In the early 1800s it began to be used figuratively.

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Example Sentences

Whenever you think you have the answer to a German problem, you have to box the compass to see how it checks with all the major forces.

From Time Magazine Archive

No one, certainly not a professional historian, would dare to box the compass of Churchill's subject matter.

From Time Magazine Archive

You will, thus, learn something of your future profession; and be able to pull a rope and box the compass before the time comes for you to join the training ship.”

From Bob Strong's Holidays Adrift in the Channel by Greene, John B.

Easterns do not "box the compass" after our fashion: with them each point has its own name, generally derived from some prominent star on the horizon.

From First Footsteps in East Africa by Burton, Richard Francis, Sir

Our course on this river, Jean Lafitte, will box the compass, indeed box an entire box of compasses, for no river is more winding.

From The Lady and the Pirate Being the Plain Tale of a Diligent Pirate and a Fair Captive by Mathes, Harry A.