tailwind

noun

tail·​wind ˈtāl-ˌwind 

plural tailwinds

1

: a wind having the same general direction as a course of movement (as of an aircraft)

2

: a force or influence that advances progress toward an improved condition

… the strengthening housing market should be providing tailwinds for home improvement retailers.

—Katherine Peralta

Medicare reform is a thorny problem even when the political tailwinds are favorable.

—Russ Wiles

Examples of tailwind in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Also, new marketing initiatives will be a tailwind for the stock, Ohmes said. —Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 4 Feb. 2026

In fact, the unexpectedly narrow deficit in Newsom’s 2026 budget was due to what California’s Legislative Analyst Office identified as a $42 billion tailwind created by a robust stock market, which led more Californians to earn more capital gains and pay more taxes on those earnings. —Lanhee J. Chen, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026

This represents a significant tailwind for Lam Research’s electroplating and TSV etch tools. —Sasirekha Subramanian, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026

With multiple tailwinds still in play, though, the conversation has largely shifted from whether to invest in silver to how best to gain exposure to this momentum. —Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 16 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1897, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tailwind

• chagrined
• crosswind
• downwind
• rescind
• upwind
• whirlwind
• woodwind
• finned
• ginned
• grinned
• pinned
• sinned

Kids Definition

tail wind

noun

: a wind having the same general direction as the course of a moving object (as an aircraft)