idiom
Sail close to the wind
sayl KLOHS tuh thuh WIND
/seɪl kloʊs tə ðə wɪnd/Listen
Hear it in a clear American voice. Slow it down to catch each syllable.
Syllable breakdown
sailclosetothewind
Dictionary meaning
To act in a way that is very near to the boundary of what is legal, ethical, or acceptable, risking trouble.
Examples
- The company was sailing close to the wind with its aggressive tax avoidance strategy.
- His comments sailed close to the wind, though they stopped just short of defamation.
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