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back burner

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back burner

noun back burners · back-burner · backburner

  1. countable A section of a stove used to keep some pots warm while one focuses on others. In restaurants, the back burner is the place that chefs leave their sauces and soup stocks to simmer while they are engaged in other, more immediately pressing, and faster operations on the front burners.

    Opposite: front burner

  2. figuratively, uncountable A state of low urgency; a state of low current importance. We'll put next year's Christmas party on the back burner until we deal with the current financial crisis.

    Opposite: front burner

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MLA

"back burner." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/back%20burner. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

back burner. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/back%20burner

Chicago

"back burner." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/back%20burner.

BibTeX
@misc{back_burner_2026,
  title = {back burner},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/back%20burner},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}