down to the wire

Idioms  

1. To the last minute; to the very end. For example, We're just about down to the wire with this project. This term comes from horseracing, where it was long the practice to stretch a wire across and above the track at the finish line. It was extended to figurative use about 1900.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

down to the wire

“There’s always the little stuff I can be better at,” he said after putting up 380 all-purpose yards against Etiwanda in a 35-28 victory that went down to the wire.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026

Hefty US tariffs on some Canadian products took effect on Saturday after days of negotiations that went down to the wire failed to produce an agreement.

From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026

Efforts to avoid the tariffs are going down to the wire.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Now I’m down to the wire on either purchasing a replacement or paying capital-gains tax and depreciation recapture.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

Our second game came right down to the wire, but by the end of it, I’d spotted a pattern to the lich’s playing technique.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

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