on deck
Idioms-
Available, ready for action, as in We had ten kids on deck to clean up after the dance . [ Slang ; second half of 1800s]
-
In baseball, scheduled to bat next, waiting near home plate to bat, as in Joe was on deck next . [1860s] Both usages allude to crew members being on the deck of a ship, in readiness to perform their duties.
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.
Or, be sure you have a friend on deck who is willing to attend should the other person cancel.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 3, 2026
"Come tomorrow morning it will be all hands on deck to dry up the areas that aren't under the covers," he added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026
"I don't think we have any more time to wait. This is all hands on deck."
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
“This hasn’t happened as long as I can remember, so we’re definitely going to have to have all hands on deck to think about how we’re going to safely recover the boat.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
Each schooner carried a bunch of wooden dories stacked on deck, and when they got to the fishing grounds the men got into the dories and rowed away, looking for cod and haddock.
From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
