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

“I thought I had taken care of it and was going to have smooth sailing for 8 to 10 years and then get another one of the same thing,” Glannan said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

“But the underlying structure still reads as anything but smooth sailing for equity investors.”

From MarketWatch • Mar. 24, 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

"Then smooth sailing, sailor," he said, and slapped me on the back.

From "Hole in My Life" by Jack Gantos

Related Words

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