on the spot

See also: on-the-spot

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Prepositional phrase

on the spot

1. (idiomatic) At that very moment.

   Synonyms: right away, then and there

   He liked the house, so he made an offer on the spot.

   • 1739, Samuel Sharp, “Of Amputation” (chapter XXXVII), in A Treatise on the Operations of Surgery, London: J. Brotherton, page 221:

     There are in the Armies a great many Inſtances of Gun-ſhot Wounds of the Arm near the Scapula, which require Amputation at the Shoulder; but the Apprehenſion of loſing their Patients on the Spot by the Hæmorrhage, has deterred Surgeons from undertaking it.

2. (idiomatic) Having to answer or decide without warning or preparation.

   All the sudden questions put him on the spot and he had to think quickly.

3. (idiomatic) In a particular place.

   Synonyms: in place, on location, on site, on the premises, in the room

   This report comes from our man on the spot in Gaza.

   We exercised by jumping up and down on the spot.

   • 1928, Dorothy L. Sayers, “The Abominable History of the Man with Copper Fingers”, in Lord Peter Views the Body:

     I had accepted an engagement to go out with Mystofilms Ltd. in Fake of Dead Man's Bush—the dwarf-men picture, you know, taken on the spot among the Australian bushmen.

   • 1945 September and October, C. Hamilton Ellis, “Royal Trains—V”, in Railway Magazine, pages 251–252:

     […] on October 29, 1888, the Russian imperial train was derailed at Borki by defective track, and twenty-one persons were killed. Although these did not include the Emperor Alexander III, who escaped with a bruising, a footman serving coffee to him at the critical moment, and his dog, which was lying on the floor beside him, were both killed on the spot.

Descendants

• → Irish: ar an spota (calque)

Translations

at the very moment

• Bashkir: шунда уҡ (şunda uq)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 當場／当场 (zh) (dāngchǎng)

• Dutch: ter plekke (nl)
• Finnish: siinä paikassa, saman tien (fi)
• French: sur-le-champ (fr), séance tenante (fr)
• Georgian: ეგრევე (egreve), მაშინვე (mašinve)
• German: auf der Stelle (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: παραχρῆμα (parakhrêma)

  Modern: αυτή τη στιγμή (aftí ti stigmí)

• Irish: ar an ásc sin, ar an spota
• Italian: subito (it), immediatamente (it)
• Latin: ilico, illico, praesto
• Macedonian: на лице место (na lice mesto) (idiomatic)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: på flekken

  Nynorsk: på flekken

• Polish: z miejsca (pl)
• Russian: неме́дленно (ru) (nemédlenno), сра́зу (же) (ru) (srázu (že)), ту́т же (tút že)
• Scottish Gaelic: anns a' bhad, sa bhad, anns an spot
• Swedish: på fläcken (sv)

having to answer or decide without warning

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: tiukille
• Russian: please add this translation if you can

in a particular place

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Dutch: ter plekke (nl)
• Finnish: paikalla (fi), paikan päällä (fi)
• French: sur place (fr)
• Greek: επί τόπου (el) (epí tópou)
• Italian: sul posto
• Russian: на ме́сте (ru) (na méste)
• Serbo-Croatian: na mjestu

See also

• hit the spot
• on the dot
• on-the-spot (adjective)