toeing the mark
Staying in line
Toeing the mark means conforming to rules or standards, behaving as expected or required: New employees quickly learn to toe the mark.
The expression comes from runners positioning their toes at the starting line before a race.
Someone who toes the mark follows orders without deviation—the phrase often implies obedience to authority rather than genuine agreement.
- adherenceFaithful following of something
- lineContinuous mark or queue
- startTo set going
- obedienceCompliance with authority
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
follow orders · chain of command · conformity · by the book · color inside the lines · precision · submission · acquiescence · foot · regimentation · discipline · stance · crouch · standardization · chalk · compliance · race · protocol
toeing the markrebelling
Resisting established authority
breaking the rules · disobeying · insubordination · bucking the system · resisting
toeing the markdoing one's own thing
Acting on personal preference
coloring outside the lines · nonconformity · freewheeling · improvising · running wild
toeing the markacting out
Expressing distress behaviorally
running wild · cutting loose · doing one's own thing · going astray · misbehaving
toeing, mark, marks, marked, marking, marker, markers, remark, remarks