✨ Right Tack/Track, to Take/On the ✨
Definition: To take or be on the correct course of action or reasoning.
🔄 Tack: A term derived from sailing, referring to a ship’s course when it is tacking (steering in a zigzag fashion when sailing into the wind).
🚶 Track: Refers to the direction of a path. Alludes to someone being on the right direction of a path—physically or metaphorically.
Both expressions have been around for a while:
- Right Tack first caught the wind in 1675, evoking the sturdy image of a seafarer skillfully navigating treacherous waters.
- Right Track tracks its origins around 1880, evoking the straightforward image of journeying on a well-marked path.
Synonyms:
- On the right path
- In the right direction
- On a roll
- Hitting the mark
Antonyms:
- On the wrong tack
- Off track
- Misguided
- Bumbling
😂 Humor-Filled Quotes:
- “It’s often said marriage is a two-way street; and right tackle Dalvin probably had to tack left in order to escape from his wife’s to-do list.”
- “If you’re always on the right track, how do you explain all those times you eat cereal with a fork?”
📚 Literature & Books:
- Moby-Dick by Herman Melville—For the ultimate journey in search of the right tack against one beast of a whale.
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy—A hauntingly beautiful track through a post-apocalyptic landscape.
🎶 Songs:
- Sailing by Christopher Cross
- On the Road Again by Willie Nelson
📽️ Movies:
- Finding Nemo—Because no matter how lost you feel in the ocean, even a clueless fish can find the right tack.
- The Pursuit of Happyness—An inspiring story about staying on the right track despite life’s hardest blows.
Farewell Thought: Whether you’re navigating the turbulent seas or trudging along a winding path, may you always find your right tack and track. And if you stray, remember: even the best sailors sometimes need a little course correction.
### Which of these phrases is an idiom for taking the correct course of action?
- [x] On the right track
- [ ] Walking with cloud feet
- [ ] Flying with zigzag wings
- [ ] Steering in square circles
> **Explanation:** “On the right track” is the correct phrase, meaning to follow the correct course of action or reasoning.
### 'To be on the right tack' comes from which of these activities?
- [ ] Writing letters
- [ ] Cooking spaghetti
- [ ] Playing board games
- [x] Sailing
> **Explanation:** "To be on the right tack" has nautical origins, referring to a ship's direction when navigating winds.
### True or False: 'On the right track' is all about staying fit on a running track.
- [ ] True
- [x] False
> **Explanation:** False. "On the right track" means pursuing the correct course of action, not physical fitness on a running track.
### Which of these is an antonym for “on the right tack”?
- [ ] On cloud nine
- [ ] In the pink
- [x] On the wrong track
- [ ] Fly off the handle
> **Explanation:** "On the wrong track" is the antonym, meaning pursuing an incorrect course of action.
### What would you be if you steadily kept making bad decisions?
- [ ] Right as rain
- [ ] Hitting the nail on the head
- [ ] On cloud nine
- [x] On the wrong tack
> **Explanation:** "On the wrong tack" suggests you're making continuous bad decisions.
