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

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

Perhaps surprisingly, Al-Joundi sees another tailwind coming from crypto. —Paulina Likos, CNBC, 27 Jan. 2026

Rookie running back Kyle Monangai highlighted the grit and belief of this year’s squad as core traits that should provide at least some tailwind heading into next season. —Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 21 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)