under the wire
prep_phrase1
Hobbies, Horse racing, Horseracing, Horses, Lifestyle, Pets, Racing, Sports Across 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:
2
Idiomatic At the last minute; before the deadline; barely on time; nearly late.
- 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
- in the nick of time