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

More importantly, the release of eurozone inflation for October, due Tuesday, could provide further tailwind to bonds, albeit investors might prefer to stay on the sidelines until the Federal Open Market Committee meeting on Wednesday, UniCredit Research analysts say. —WSJ, 30 Oct. 2023

Throughout a journey, planes may encounter headwinds and tailwinds. —Sam Burros, Peoplemag, 17 Oct. 2023

Plus, there’s a macro tailwind in terms of government investment in the space with the Inflation Reduction Act. —Nicole Gull McElroy, Fortune, 13 July 2023

While the tailwinds come from behind the plane, allowing travelers to get to their destination quicker, headwinds can slow a plane down. —Sam Burros, Peoplemag, 17 Oct. 2023

With a tailwind of high oil and gas prices, Shell more than doubled its profit to $39.9 billion in 2022, easily surpassing its previous annual record of $28.4 billion reached in 2008. —Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 5 Oct. 2023

Because these winds can sometimes reach speeds up to 200 mph, airlines take advantage of these tailwinds when flying eastward to save both time and fuel. —Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 5 Sep. 2023

The return trip is with a tailwind, and the standard course is around a mile-and-a-half. —Chris Bieri, Anchorage Daily News, 28 Aug. 2023

This uptick was propelled by the tailwind generated from tight inventory levels, which proved strong enough to overpower the headwind caused by the mortgage rate shock. —Lance Lambert, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2023

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Word History

First Known Use

1897, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

tail wind

noun

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