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kick about

B1 informal separable both
In simple words

To talk about ideas in a relaxed way, or to be somewhere without doing anything important.

Literal meaning: To kick a ball around without any particular goal.

Meanings

1 B1 idiomatic informal

To discuss ideas casually and informally without making decisions.

"We kicked a few ideas about at the meeting but didn't settle on anything."

Grammar: separable
2 B1 idiomatic informal

To be lying around somewhere, unused or forgotten.

"There should be a spare charger kicking about in the kitchen drawer."

Grammar: inseparable
3 B1 idiomatic informal

To spend time in a place without a specific purpose; to loiter.

"He's been kicking about town all summer with nothing to do."

Grammar: inseparable
Usage notes

Primarily British English. 'Kick about' meaning to casually discuss is common in conversation and meetings. The sense of being 'lying around' is often used without a direct object ('it's kicking about somewhere').

Commonly used with

idea plan suggestion proposal somewhere around

Forms

Base
kick about
I/you/we/they
3rd person
kicks about
he/she/it
Past simple
kicked about
yesterday
Past participle
kicked about
have + pp
-ing form
kicking about
continuous

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Synonyms

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