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

While there are more tailwinds for COMAC now than before, one of the biggest challenges for COMAC is getting certified by major authorities outside China. —Byprarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 8 Apr. 2024

Having Stroud on the relative cheap through 2026 stiffens the tailwind, enabling the Texans to devote larger slices of the salary cap to other positions. —Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Apr. 2024

Buyers and sellers will also be hoping to ride the tailwind of Berlin’s European Film Market, which saw record attendance and a resurgence of indie dealmaking just three weeks ago. —Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Mar. 2024

Especially at this near-term top in long rates, which should be a nice tailwind for the underlying holdings of UTG. —Brett Owens, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

Secular tailwinds supporting these investments include data that shows mothers are having their first child at an older age than past generations and that more LGBTQ+ parents are turning to in vitro fertilization to have children. —Byjohn Kell, Fortune, 19 Mar. 2024

While snowfall in those areas doesn’t directly affect the snowpack in the Sierra, the tailwinds of the recent blizzard there — plus additional snow from a smaller storm early this week — continued to bolster the snow drifts that are key to the state’s water supply. —Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024

Right now, economic data suggest that slowing inflation, robust economic growth and a bull market could give Mr. Biden a strong tailwind by November. —Jeff Sommer, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2024

Sailors can easily find themselves with a headwind or a tailwind, and conditions can change very quickly. —Ryan Weissmueller, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024

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)