smooth sailing

idiomatic phrase

: easy progress without impediment or difficulty

After the mix-up was rectified, it was smooth sailing again.

—Mike Brown

He just kept talking and talking his nonstop sunny talk about what a great summer we were going to have and that he had tons of plans and that we would get caught up as father and son and soon all our rough past would be behind us and we would have nothing but smooth sailing for our future.

—Jack Ganto

Examples of smooth sailing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Their wealth of experience offers invaluable tips to ensure your maiden voyage is smooth sailing. —Jill Schildhouse, Southern Living, 1 Mar. 2026

This is arguably the first real hardship Rob has faced in this game, which thus far has been largely smooth sailing for him. —Tom Smyth, Vulture, 27 Feb. 2026

Hiring remains tight—even for Gen Z tech grads Still, strong salary projections don’t mean smooth sailing. —Preston Fore, Fortune, 26 Feb. 2026

Travel hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing this year. —Liz Knueven, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1824, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for smooth sailing

• assailing
• availing
• bewailing
• blackmailing
• curtailing
• derailing
• descaling
• detailing
• dovetailing
• entailing
• exhaling
• impaling