full steam

A form of full speed ahead — A command to move forward at maximum speed.

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Meanings

noun
  1. alternativeAlternative form of full speed ahead.

    Supposing she were at full steam during the whole time, taking the 16 days' consumption of fuel […]

    1834, Report from the Select Committee on Steam-navigation to India
adverbfull steam (not comparable)
  1. alternativenot comparableAlternative form of full steam ahead.
    1 more example

    They have formed the Community Research Initiatives of New England (CRINE), an organization that could be up and running full steam this summer if it receives the $400,000 in grant money it has applied for from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AMFAR) to cover its first year of operating cost.

    1989 April 22, Judy Harris, “Community-Based AIDS Research Group Forming For New England”, in Gay Community News, page 3
Cite this entry
APA

full steam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/full%20steam

MLA

“full steam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/full%20steam. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “full steam,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/full%20steam.

Source: full steam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.