kick around

verb

kicked around; kicking around; kicks around

intransitive verb

1

: to wander or pass time aimlessly

2

a

: to lie about mostly unnoticed or forgotten

b

: to undergo consideration usually intermittently over a period of time

ideas that have been kicking around for years

transitive verb

1

: to treat in an inconsiderate or high-handed fashion

2

: to consider, examine, or discuss from various angles

Synonyms

• chew over
• cogitate
• consider
• contemplate
• debate
• deliberate
• entertain
• eye
• meditate
• mull (over)
• perpend
• ponder
• pore (over)
• question
• revolve
• ruminate
• study
• think (about or over)
• turn
• weigh
• wrestle (with)

Examples of kick around in a Sentence

the board spent the afternoon kicking around the feasibility of opening an overseas office

I really can't do much but kick around at work until I get the rest of the submissions.

Recent Examples on the Web

As good as all the players in Dead Outlaw are, the show belongs to Durand, who has kicked around Broadway for some 20 years in shows from Spring Awakening and the Go Gos jukeboxer Head Over Heels to the 2023 crowd-pleaser Shucked. —Greg Evans, Deadline, 27 Apr. 2025

Republicans have been kicking around the idea of a roughly 40 percent top tax bracket on income above $1 million amid talks about the sweeping reconciliation package GOP lawmakers are crafting. —Brett Samuels, The Hill, 25 Apr. 2025

Though she’s been kicking around the idea for 20 years, Luce and her team officially committed to it in November. —Noah Lyons, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025

The Gadfly will not have Michael Hill to kick around anymore. —Christopher Maag, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for kick around

• aboveground
• battleground
• belowground
• paperbound
• turnaround
• ultrasound
• underground
• wraparound
• abound
• aground
• astound
• background