Back to square one definition

Etymology

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the phrase most likely originated from children's games such as hopscotch and snakes and ladders. The earliest recorded use of it in print is from a 1952 edition of the Economic Journal.

Adjective

Located back at the start, as after a dead-end or failure.

After spending six hours on the intake we realized that there was nothing wrong with it, so we are back to square one.

Adverb

Back to the start, as after a dead-end or failure.

After spending six hours on the intake we realized that there was nothing wrong with it, so we went back to square one.