the wire

noun

US

: a thin piece of string that the winner of a race breaks through at the end of the race

The marathon ended in a sprint to the wire by the two top runners.

—often used figuratively

The election went/came (right) down to the wire.

Examples of the wire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s where the competitive Wisconsin governor’s contest between Republican Congressman Tom Tiffany and Democrat Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley is going down to the wire. — Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 2 Nov. 2026

Missouri hasn’t had to play a game that goes down to the wire yet this season. — Pj Green november 2, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2026

Their solution replaces traditional solid conductors with hollow ones, allowing coolant to flow through the wire itself. — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2026

In garden beds, lay the wire 2 to 3 feet below the surface to keep gophers from accessing vegetables and plants from beneath. — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 24 Oct. 2026

Rhymes for the wire

• briar
• brier
• buyer
• choir
• crier
• cryer
• drier
• dryer
• eyer
• flier
• flyer
• friar