What does “Spin one's wheels” mean?

Spin one's wheels

Meaning: To waste time or effort without making progress; to be stuck in a situation where nothing changes.

Girar en el vacío

Significado: Perder tiempo o esfuerzo sin avanzar; estar atrapado en una situación donde nada cambia.

Girar em falso

Significado: Perder tempo ou esforço sem progredir; estar preso numa situação em que nada muda.

Tourner en rond

Signification: Perdre du temps ou des efforts sans progresser ; être bloqué dans une situation où rien ne change.

Sich im Kreis drehen

Bedeutung: Zeit oder Mühe verschwenden, ohne voranzukommen; in einer Situation feststecken, in der sich nichts ändert.

Girare a vuoto

Significato: Perdere tempo o sforzi senza progredire; essere bloccato in una situazione in cui nulla cambia.

Boşa kürek çekmek

Anlam: İlerleme kaydetmeden zaman veya çaba harcamak.

原地打转

意思: 浪费时间或精力却没有进展；陷入停滞不前的境地。

空回りする

意味: 進展のないまま時間を無駄にすること。

제자리걸음하다

의미: 진전 없이 시간을 낭비하다.

Dialogue

14:30:10 - Have you finished the report?

14:30:13 - No. I've been spinning my wheels all morning.

14:30:16 - What's blocking you?

14:30:19 - I don't even know where to start.

20:45:33 - Are you still trying to fix that old car?

20:45:36 - Yes, but I'm just spinning my wheels. It won't start.

20:45:39 - Maybe it's time to let it go.

20:45:42 - You're probably right.

11:05:50 - We've been arguing about this for hours.

11:05:53 - I know. We're just spinning our wheels.

11:05:56 - Let's take a break and come back to it.

11:05:59 - Good idea.

21:40:55 - The business isn't growing.

21:40:58 - We're spinning our wheels. Same marketing, same results.

21:41:01 - Time to try something new.

21:41:04 - Agreed. Let's brainstorm tomorrow.