Meaning
With every sail set and drawing: moving at maximum speed, or operating at full power and effort. Literally it describes a ship carrying canvas on every mast in a good wind; figuratively it describes a person, campaign or enterprise proceeding with full vigour and momentum, often with a sense of a venture well launched and hard to stop. Used as a predicate more than attributively. Pairs naturally with verbs of motion such as bore down, proceeded and came on. Mildly literary or journalistic in tone; American dictionaries file it under at/in full sail. Regional use: All English-speaking countries; general English.
Origin
A plain nautical term extended to general use. Merriam-Webster headwords the idiom as at/in full sail, defined as moving through the water by using all of its sails. The literal collocation was standard by the nineteenth century: Richard Henry Dana's Two Years Before the Mast (1840) remarks on the beauty of a ship under full sail - verified verbatim on Wikisource. Figurative use was established by at least 1860: Louisa May Alcott's A Modern Cinderella (Atlantic Monthly, October 1860) has a woman bore down upon the door like a man-of-war under full sail, also verified verbatim on Wikisource. No public OED dating exists for the phrase, so the figurative record rests on the verified primary texts.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- at full sail
- in full sail
- under all sail
Usage Examples
- The campaign is now under full sail, with rallies scheduled in every swing state.
- We watched the tall ship enter the harbor under full sail, every yard of canvas spread.
- After months of delay, the renovation is finally under full sail and should finish by June.