My son's Little League game on Sunday was originally set for 3:30, but it's now been rescheduled for an earlier, 11:30 start time. In explaining the new schedule, I referred to this change as "pushing back" the start time. Upon further reflection, though, I realized I could (and probably would) have used the exact same idiom had the game been rescheduled for later in the day -- i.e., if it had been "pushed back" to 5:30. So: which is the proper meaning of "push back" in the context of rescheduling an event: earlier or later (or both)? (Yes, I know there are easy ways to avoid this confusion -- "reschedule for earlier," "postpone until later" -- but where's the fun in simple solutions?)
Monday, April 11, 2011
ALOTT5MA GRAMMAR RODEO MONDAY ALL-REQUEST EDITION: Because Professor Jeff, our 2007 Distinguished Visiting Lecturer, has a question:
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