sail close to the wind

== English == === Etymology === Sense 2 (“to behave in a manner on the verge of being dangerous, illegal, or improper”) derives from the fact that to sail an old-fashioned sailing ship close to the direction the wind was blowing from was risky because a small change in the wind direction could fill the sails and push them against the mast, potentially breaking it. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /seɪl ˈkləʊs tə‿ðə ˈwɪnd/ (General American) IPA(key): /seɪl ˈkloʊs tə‿ðə ˈwɪnd/ Rhymes: -ɪnd === Verb === sail close to the wind (third-person singular simple present sails close to the wind, present participle sailing close to the wind, simple past and past participle sailed close to the wind) (intransitive) (nautical) To sail in a direction close to that from which the wind is blowing, while still making headway. (figurative) To behave in a manner that is on the verge of being dangerous, illegal, or improper. ==== Related terms ==== close to the wind (adjective, adverb) ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ==== close-hauled tack === Further reading === “to sail near (or close to) the wind” under “sail, v.1”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, September 2023. “sail close to the wind, phrase”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022. Colin McIntosh, editor (2013), “sail close to the wind”, in Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 4th edition, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, reproduced in the Cambridge English Dictionary website, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. “sail close to the wind” in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Longman. “sail close to the wind, idiom”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.