off and running

Idioms

Making a good start, progressing well, as in After the first episode the new soap opera was off and running. Originating in horse racing, as the traditional announcement at the beginning of a race (“They're off and running”), this phrase began to be used more broadly in the second half of the 1900s.

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.

But from the moment in April 2015 that Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy for president, they were off and running again.

From Salon • Apr. 21, 2026

It's depressing because I'm old enough to remember when in the '70s the feminist movement felt like, "OK, we're off and running."

From Salon • May 1, 2025

We're off and running in what I'll generously call mucky conditions in West Yorkshire.

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2024

He raised almost triple the $50,000 goal, and, with the blessings of Polly and Harris, the project was off and running.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 20, 2023

Academic types drifted down from Boston, looked around, began explaining things to each other, and the place was off and running.

From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023