How to Use on the fly in a Sentence
on the fly
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But with a rookie head coach figuring it out on the fly, the floor may be much lower.
—The Athletic Nfl Staff, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
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When a task requires a tool that doesn’t exist, Muse creates one on the fly.
—Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 21 Sep. 2026
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Schneider found himself in the fast lane, needing to figure out those driving skills on the fly.
—Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 30 Aug. 2026
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Yes, these questions are being answered on the fly, which seems par for the course during this madness.
—Trey Wallace Outkick, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
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For my money, third base has easily been the hardest position to fill on the fly this year.
—John Laghezza, New York Times, 24 July 2026
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Both coaches worked with a collective to identify and solve problems on the fly.
—Alec Lewis, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
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Throwing together a functioning school on the fly wasn’t cheap or easy, the school district said in the complaint.
—Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 22 Sep. 2026
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In one section, Selinger muses about her time working at one famous restaurant, learning on the fly.
—Candy Hom, AJC.com, 26 Sep. 2026
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Buffalo Traffic Jam are adapting to overnight success on the fly.
—Josh Crutchmer, Rolling Stone, 31 July 2026
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Google suggests its new operating system could be used to create custom widgets on the fly.
—Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 19 Aug. 2026
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Traffic signals can adjust on the fly based on actual congestion.
—Lee-Lean Shu, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
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If that is this league’s new economic topography, teams such as Dallas will need to find a way to adjust on the fly.
—James Mirtle, New York Times, 30 June 2026
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His impact last season was more sporadic than steady, however, which is not uncommon for a first-year starter learning on the fly.
—Dane Brugler, New York Times, 16 July 2026
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Stay Ahead Some things have to be decided on the fly during a renovation.
—Mary Catherine McAnnally Scott, Southern Living, 24 Aug. 2025
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In years past, mainstays like Trent McDuffie or Bryan Cook might have been around to help teach on the fly.
—Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 11 Aug. 2026
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That, combined with the ability to effortlessly switch the ball between his feet on the fly, is the most exciting aspect of his profile.
—Colin Millar, New York Times, 1 July 2026
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Then the researchers piped apple cider vinegar into that airstream, switching it on and off depending on the fly’s position on this virtual field.
—Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 1 Aug. 2026
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Emma Rodriguez didn't catch Rogers' home run on the fly, but picked it up when a team employee pointed it out to her on the ground in the front row of the bleachers.
—Todd Feurer, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
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The bad • While open tryouts and figuring it out on the fly yielded roles for Morris and Gómez, the bullpen has nearly sucked the life out of this team.
—Dan Hayes, New York Times, 16 July 2026
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Fantasy players can take a chance on Jonathan Loáisiga in the near-term and figure out the roles on the fly as August progresses.
—Greg Jewett, New York Times, 30 July 2026
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One of the reasons that people were so excited about Shelton so early in his career is his ability to make adjustments on the fly even in high-pressure matches.
—Ava Wallace, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026
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Washington Capitals Washington is trying to tread water, rebuilding on the fly after the old core has moved on.
—Corey Pronman, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
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His ability to synthesize the game and innovate on the fly is essential for anything resembling a Super Bowl run.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 25 July 2026
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San Francisco is still bolting new pieces together, including fitting Mike Evans into the offense on the fly.
—Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
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And the cosmic radiation that Earth’s atmosphere filters out can scramble calculations, forcing systems to catch and correct errors on the fly.
—Peter Hall, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2026
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Those relationships could prove especially important for a Kansas defense trying to build continuity on the fly.
—Latif Love august 7, Kansas City Star, 7 Aug. 2026
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So So Fed, a Lao-Chinese-American spot that’s one of Atlanta’s buzziest places to eat, has no choice but to pull things together on the fly.
—Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026
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Aerospace companies can anticipate when a part or machine is likely to require service, and with that, maintenance schedules for service teams can be planned in advance, with unexpected malfunctions handled on the fly.
—Beena Ammanath, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
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But now, following Mahomes’ astonishingly rapid comeback, and the Chiefs’ equally impressive retooling on the fly, their quests have intensified again.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
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This game preserves the difficulty of coming up with an elaborate, consistent false narrative on the spot, and the challenge of adapting that narrative on the fly when other players present convincing (and sometimes fake) counter-evidence.
—Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 30 June 2026
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'on the fly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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