smooth sailing

Idioms  

1. Easy progress, as in We had a hard time setting up the new computer system but it'll be smooth sailing from here on. The smooth in this idiom alludes to calm waters, free from big waves or roughness, a usage dating from the late 1300s. The transfer to other kinds of easy progress dates from the second half of the 1900s. Also see plain sailing.

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Example Sentences

Development has not been smooth sailing though, with makers IO Interactive announcing a two-month delay to the release in December to "further polish" it.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

It wasn’t all smooth sailing in that crisis either.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

"We've been in this situation before where we have lost a game early and World Cups aren't always smooth sailing," he said.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

To be sure, 2025 was hardly smooth sailing on Wall Street or Main, what with “Liberation Day” tariffs, a near-bear market, persistent inflation, and threats to the independence of the Federal Reserve.

From Barron's • Jan. 1, 2026

Once she got examined for her teacher’s certificate, it’d be smooth sailing for her.

From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck

Related Words

• aplomb
• composure
• dexterity
• efficiency
• familiarity
• flexibility
• fluency
• nonchalance
• poise
• quickness
• simplicity