on track

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

an idiom meaning progressing as planned or expected, heading toward a goal without significant deviation or delay, derived from the image of a train following its predetermined rails toward a scheduled destination; to be on track is to be meeting milestones, maintaining the correct trajectory, and giving observers and stakeholders confidence that the desired outcome will be achieved; conversely, to go off track is to encounter obstacles, distractions, or failures that threaten the plan; on track is one of the most common phrases in project management, performance review, and sports commentary, where it functions as a shorthand assessment that the current state of affairs is consistent with the desired end state