Meanings
- hobbiesAcross the finish line.
Lying forward flattened along Sunfish's hard-muscled shoulders, Bud was gaining and gaining—one length, then two lengths as he shot under the wire, slowed and rode back to find a silent crowd watching him.
1921, B. M. Bower, chapter 15, in Cow-Country - idiomaticAt the last minute; before the deadline; barely on time; nearly late.
1 more example
Russians had heard rumors, and foreign correspondents had obtained confirmation, that the Dictator will soon drastically tighten up proverbially loose Bolshevik divorce laws. In a panic to get in under the wire, every Moscow mate who has recently thought of divorce was last week jamming the official bureaus.
1935 July 15, “Zags Jammed”, in TIME, archived from the original on 22 Dec 2011
Synonyms & antonyms
Translations
Finnish kalkkiviivoilla
- kalkkiviivoillaat the last minute
Icelandic á síðustu forvöðum, á elleftu stundu
- á síðustu forvöðumat the last minute
- á elleftu stunduat the last minute
Russian в последний момент
- в последний момент (v poslednij moment)at the last minute
Cite this entry
under the wire. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20the%20wire
“under the wire.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20the%20wire. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “under the wire,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/under%20the%20wire.
Source: under the wire on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.