back seat

Universal Words noun a seat at the back of a vehicle IDIOMS a back-seat driver 1 a passenger in a vehicle who keeps giving advice to the driver about how he or she should drive 2 a person who wants to be in control of sth that is not really their responsibility take a back seat to allow sb else to play a more active and important role in a particular situation than you do: Many managers take a back seat and leave recruitment to specialists.