Meaning
Used of a contest, negotiation, or process whose outcome remains undecided until the very last moment. It typically appears in constructions like 'go down to the wire' or 'come down to the wire', and suggests a close, tense finish rather than a comfortable one. Neutral and informal-to-neutral register, common in journalism about sports, elections, and deadlines. Regional use: General English.
Origin
The phrase comes from horse racing in the era before electronic timing and photo finishes, when officials stretched a wire across the track above the finish line to help judge close finishes; a race that stayed undecided until the horses reached that wire was said to go 'down to the wire'. The Phrase Finder has traced printed uses to the 1880s: a spoof racing commentary in Australia's Southern Argus in 1884 and a description of two horses in Scribner's Magazine in the United States in 1889, so the expression circulated among racing fans in both countries during that decade. Etymonline dates the idiom to 1901, reflecting its spread into general figurative use somewhat later. Which country used it first is genuinely unsettled; The Phrase Finder notes Australia currently holds the earliest citation by a small margin.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- come down to the wire
- down to the last wire
- go down to the wire
- right down to the wire
Usage Examples
- The title race went down to the wire, with the championship decided by a single point on the final day of the season.
- Budget negotiations came down to the wire, and the deal was signed minutes before the midnight deadline.
- She prepared her presentation on the train, working right down to the wire before the meeting began.