at sea
Idioms-
Aboard a ship, on the ocean, as in Within a few hours the ship would be out at sea . During World War II a famous American newscaster addressed his radio broadcasts to listeners everywhere, including “all the ships at sea.” [1300s]
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Also, all at sea . Perplexed, bewildered, as in She was all at sea in these new surroundings . This idiom transfers the condition of a vessel that has lost its bearings to the human mind. Charles Dickens used it in Little Dorrit (1855): “Mrs. Tickit ... was so plainly at sea on this part of the case.” [Second half of 1700s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The agency has urged stronger international cooperation to dismantle smuggling and trafficking networks, alongside the creation of safe and legal migration pathways to reduce deaths at sea.
From BBC
"We want to go home, but if we go home without money, then what? We've been working ourselves to the bone out at sea. How can we just be abandoned like that?"
From Barron's
While apart, their working lives — his at sea, hers on land — speak to a confluence of the elemental and the man-made.
From Los Angeles Times
However, human rights groups have consistently accused the Greek coastguard of pursuing dangerous and illegal policies at sea.
From BBC
Out at sea, Joanne had been struggling to keep hold of her younger children.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
