before the wind

Idioms  

1. Driven ahead, hurried, as in The bikers are moving before the wind, so it's hard to tell who will come in first. The literal meaning of this term is nautical, referring to a ship sailing in the same direction as the wind and being propelled forward. Its figurative use dates from the mid-1800s.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

before the wind

Open qualifying, posted his 68 in the morning before the wind and the temperatures picked up.

From Washington Times ● Jun. 1, 2023

On a good day, even a distance runner’s legs wobble and fail long before the wind does.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2023

Flames came within a kilometer of the Kemerkoy thermal power in the district of Milas late Tuesday before the wind changed direction, helping avert a crisis there for the moment.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 4, 2021

“It’s like I used to be on solid ground,” he says before the wind blows him away.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 7, 2021

Their sails would belly out full and white before the wind.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep