drawing board

American  

noun

1. a rectangular board on which paper is placed or mounted for drawing or drafting.

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idioms

1. back to the drawing board, back to the original or an earlier stage of planning or development.

   Our plan didn't work out, so it's back to the drawing board.

2. on the drawing board, in the planning or design stage.

   The shopping center is still on the drawing board.

drawing board British  

noun

1. a smooth flat rectangular board on which paper, canvas, etc, is placed for making drawings

2. return to an earlier stage in an enterprise because a planned undertaking has failed

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drawing board More Idioms  

1. see back to the drawing board.

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Etymology

Origin of drawing board

First recorded in 1715–25

Example Sentences

Talk about going back to the drawing board.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026

Lewis and other Republican leaders went back to the drawing board.

From Salon • Dec. 24, 2025

Anna de Graaff says, "The extreme properties of The Cliff forced us to go back to the drawing board, and come up with entirely new models."

From Science Daily • Nov. 29, 2025

“There needs to be a standard and we need to execute and if we don’t execute, we go back to the drawing board, we work on those things, we get better and we execute.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 16, 2025

Rab, Mr. Lorne, and Johnny all had their heads over the drawing board where the second letter was pieced together and spread out.

From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes