spin one's wheels
Effort without progress
To spin one's wheels is to expend effort without making progress, like a car whose tires rotate uselessly in mud or snow.
The phrase suggests frustrated activity that goes nowhere: I've been spinning my wheels on this project for months.
It implies wasted energy rather than productive work.
- stagnateCease to develop
- roadblockObstruction across a road
- tread waterMaintain position while swimming
- waste timeUse moments unproductively
- going through the motionsPerforming without genuine effort
beat a dead horse · impasse · flounder · deadlock · go in circles · run around in circles · frustration · idle · gridlock · impatience · discouragement · bottleneck · falter · going nowhere · stuck in neutral · helplessness · hurdle · struggle
progress and productivity
spin one's wheelsmake headway
Achieve forward momentum
make progress · gain traction · move forward · advance · forge ahead
spin, spins, spinning, spinner, spinners, ones, wheel, wheels, wheeled