get off the ground
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get off the ground
1. Literally, to lift up off the ground. A noun or pronoun can be used between "get" and "off." This beat-up old plane will never get off the ground!
2. To be well underway; to be at a point of stable or self-sufficient progress or development. A noun or pronoun can be used between "get" and "off." Now that this project has finally gotten off the ground, we can start to focus some of our attention on other areas of the business. Jack just wants to wait until the company gets off the ground a bit before we begin any major media campaigns.
get something off the ground
1. Lit. to get something into the air. I'll announce the weather to the passengers as soon as we get the plane off the ground. I hope they get this plane off the ground soon.
2. Fig. to get something started. (Alludes to an airplane beginning a flight.) When we get this event off the ground we can relax. It is my job to get the celebration plans off the ground.
get off the ground
Make a start, get underway, as in Because of legal difficulties, the construction project never got off the ground. This expression, alluding to flight, dates from the mid-1900s. The similar-sounding get off to a flying start, meaning "make a successful start," alludes not to flight but to a quick start in a race, a usage from the late 1800s. For example, He's off to a flying start with his dissertation.