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1sail Listen to audio/ˈseɪl/ verb
sails; sailed; sail·ing
1 a : to travel on water in a ship or boat [no obj] sail across/on/over the sea/ocean We'll sail along/up/down the coast. He sailed around the world on a luxury liner. [+ obj] She sailed the Atlantic coastline.
b : to control a ship or boat (especially one that has sails) while traveling on water [+ obj] She's sailing a boat in tomorrow's race. The ship was sailed by a crew of 8. [no obj] I've been sailing since I was a child. learning to sail
c of a ship or boat : to travel on water [+ obj] a ship that has sailed the seven seas [no obj] We sat on the shore watching boats sail by.
2 [no obj] : to begin a journey on water in a ship or boat
We sail at 9 a.m. tomorrow. They sail for/to San Francisco next week. The ship will be ready to sail in a week.
3 always followed by an adverb or preposition [no obj] : to move or proceed in an easy, quick, and smooth way
He sailed into the room. [=he walked quickly into the room in a very confident and easy way] The ball sailed [=flew] over the shortstop's head. The bill sailed through the legislature. [=the bill passed through the legislature very easily; the bill quickly became a law] She sailed through the exam/course. [=she easily passed the exam/course]
sail close to the wind
Brit : to do something that is dangerous or that may be illegal or dishonest
The company was sailing close to the wind, but it's not clear if they were breaking the law or not.

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