Dictionary.com

on the table

1

Up for discussion, as in There are two new proposals on the table. [Mid-1600s]

2

Postponed or put aside for later consideration, as in When they adjourned, three items were put on the table until the next meeting. [First half of 1700s] The table in both idioms is a figurative conference table. Also see lay one's cards on the table.

QUIZZES

BECOME A PRO CHEF WITH THIS EXQUISITE CUISINE QUIZ!

Even if you can't be a professional chef, you can at least talk like one with this vocabulary quiz.
Question 1 of 9
You may have read the word "simmer" in a recipe or two, but what does it really mean?
To cook in water that begins cold and then reaches a boil.
To stew in a sauce for a long time.
To cook in water, just below boiling temperature.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby on the table

on the spur of the moment, on the square, on the street, on the strength of, on the surface, on the table, on the take, on the tip of one's tongue, on the town, on the up-and-up, on the uptake
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.