{"id":3748,"date":"2022-05-18T16:13:21","date_gmt":"2022-05-18T16:13:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=3748"},"modified":"2022-05-18T16:13:21","modified_gmt":"2022-05-18T16:13:21","slug":"sitting-on-the-fence-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/sitting-on-the-fence-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Sitting on the Fence \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Are you looking for a way to say that you\u2019re undecided on what to do? You could say that <strong>you\u2019re \u201c<em>sitting on the fence<\/em>\u201d with your dec<\/strong>ision. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression.<\/p>\n<h2>Meaning<\/h2>\n<p><strong>If you\u2019re \u201c<em>sitting on the fence<\/em>,\u201d it means you are between deciding on two outcomes. You are unsure about which way to go with your decision, and people pressure you to finalize your choice. It has political origins, but it often appears in our everyday lives to describe indecisiveness.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You could be <em>sitting on the fence<\/em> about your decision to buy a gas grill or a smoker. Or you could be <em>sitting on the fence<\/em> about the decision to abolish the police or fund them for new training programs. The weight of the decision can vary depending on the situation.<\/p>\n<p>It can also mean that you\u2019re intentionally \u201c<em>sitting on the fence<\/em>\u201d to avoid taking sides with either party involved in the decision-making process. If you\u2019re \u201c<em>sitting on the fence<\/em>,\u201d then you refuse to engage in the activity involved with the other parties' problems.<\/p>\n<h2>Example Usage<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m still sitting on the fence with my decision. To be honest, I don\u2019t know which way I\u2019m going to go with it. What do you think I should do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI see you\u2019re still sitting on the fence with your decision. What will it take to get you to come over to our side?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you\u2019re sitting on the fence, then take some time to do more research about your decision. Check with people you know about their experience with it before deciding for yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour sitting on the fence is starting to annoy everyone. We need your answer now, or we will leave without you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s no reason for you to be sitting on the fence. You have all the information you need to decide, so do it now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you still sitting on the fence? Make a list of pros and cons and decide which one offers you more value in your life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re sitting on the fence with this one. It\u2019s challenging to decide on the right candidate for the position. We\u2019ll have to give you our decision in the morning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-3749\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Sitting-on-the-Fence.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"138\" height=\"108\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-3750\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Sitting-on-the-Fence2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"184\" height=\"107\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Origin<\/h2>\n<p>The expression \u201csitting on the fence\u201d originates from the 1800s. It has roots in US politics, where politicians would \u201csit on the fence,\u201d with the \u201cMugwumps\u201d being the most famous for using the strategy.<\/p>\n<p>The Mugwumps were a group of Republicans supporting the Democratic candidate in the 1884 election. The term originates from the Algonquin \u201cMugquomp,\u201d translating to \u201cimportant person\u201d or VIP. However, it\u2019s important to note the term was not used with respect but rather with derision.<\/p>\n<p>Opponents described them as \u201csitting on the fence\u201d with \u201ctheir mug on one side and their wump on the other.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"English Idiom | On the Fence\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uE8hXOoRvBA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>Phrases Similar to Sitting on the Fence<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Pussyfooting around.<\/li>\n<li>Be in two minds.<\/li>\n<li>Hard to take sides.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Phrases Opposite to Sitting on the Fence<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>I\u2019m with you.<\/li>\n<li>All in.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Sitting on the fence.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ways People May Say Sitting on the Fence Incorrectly<\/h2>\n<p>The phrase has nothing to do with sitting on the fence. In the case of this idiom, the fence is a decision. By sitting on the fence, you\u2019re undecided about your choice.<\/p>\n<h2>Acceptable Ways to Phrase Sitting on the Fence<\/h2>\n<p>You can use the phrase \u201csitting on the fence\u201d to tell people that you\u2019re undecided on something. It means that you\u2019re unsure of which way you want to go with your decision, and you need more convincing to make a choice. The phrase suits professional and social use.<\/p>\n<p>Use it at the office to tell your boss you\u2019re on the fence about moving to the new department or staying where you are. You can use the expression at home to tell your partner you\u2019re on the fence about the right color for the new drapes in the living room.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-2\">Are you looking for a way to say that you\u2019re undecided on what to do? You could say that you\u2019re \u201csitting on the fence\u201d with your decision. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression. Meaning If you\u2019re \u201csitting on the fence,\u201d it means you are between deciding on two outcomes. You are [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3748"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3748"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3831,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3748\/revisions\/3831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}