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Synonyms

from pillar to post

Cultural  
  1. From one place or thing to another in rapid succession: “Abernathy couldn't stick to one project and was always dashing from pillar to post.”


from pillar to post Idioms  
  1. From one thing or place to another, hither and thither. For example, After Kevin joined the Air Force, the family kept moving from pillar to post. This expression began life in the early 1400s as from post to pillar, an order no longer used, and is thought to allude to the banging about of a ball in the game of court tennis.


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

"Their voices are not being heard - they are being thrown from pillar to post around all the different organisations but nobody is actually listening to what is happening to them," she said.

From BBC Feb. 19, 2025

For too long, she argued, they had been "pushed from pillar to post between local authorities, mental health services, the police and youth offending teams".

From BBC Oct. 10, 2023

That’s Seth Rogen as Mario’s traditional adversary Donkey Kong, bellowing as he belts Mario from pillar to post.

From Seattle Times Apr. 4, 2023

These encampments pop up all over the city, and no wonder, since the residents are chased from pillar to post without any other options.

From Washington Post Feb. 5, 2023

Pale, melancholy, fiery-eyed, rushing in a frenzy of restlessness about foreign countries, tormented by the shade of the slain; hunted from pillar to post by nostalgia and vain longing for rest and peace.

From The Undying Past by Sudermann, Hermann

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