move the yardsticks
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]The phrase originates from American football, where every ten yards of forward progress by the offense moves the yardsticks ahead to measure the next ten yards of progress.
Pronunciation
[edit]Audio (General Australian): (file)
Verb
[edit]move the yardsticks (third-person singular simple present moves the yardsticks, present participle moving the yardsticks, simple past and past participle moved the yardsticks)
- (American football) To move the chains.
- (idiomatic) To make progress, as used in political and corporate venues to express proactive actions.