behind the wheel

phrase

: in the act of driving

I was nervous my first time behind the wheel.

He urged drivers to stop and rest if they feel tired behind the wheel.

—Yaron Steinbuch

… will start enforcing a requirement for commercial truck drivers travelling between provinces to track their hours behind the wheel …

—Karina Zapata

Examples of behind the wheel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Vehicle stops can be inherently fraught and unpredictable, with the person behind the wheel in control of thousands of pounds of steel that can pose great risk should a driver refuse to comply or simply panic and flee. — Caroll Alvarado, CNN Money, 14 July 2026

Red Bull’s former chief technical officer Adrian Newey was behind the wheel, taking turns with his son, Harrison, and F1 drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Isack Hadjar. — Jason Barlow, Robb Report, 13 July 2026

Joel Feder was behind the wheel of the car and his wife was in the passenger seat. — Ashley Grams, CBS News, 12 July 2026

Speaking of the part of van life spent behind the wheel, Volkswagen has slightly reworked the Grand California's driver-assistance suite to make driving a little less draining. — New Atlas, 10 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for behind the wheel

• automobile
• periosteal
• peritoneal
• abele
• alkyl
• anneal
• appeal
• cartwheel
• conceal
• congeal
• coquille
• corneal