Smooth sailing

Business English | B2

Examples and explanation

Smooth sailing = without any problems or unexpected difficulties. If you predict a process to be ‘smooth sailing’, then you are expecting it to be straightforward or easily achievable. e.g. The main challenge for us is to get our EU license application approved. Once we have that, it should be smooth sailing.

One situation in which to use this idiom is when you have achieved a positive outcome and are looking back at the journey or process and acknowledging that it was challenging at times, e.g. it wasn’t always smooth sailing. This usage can be seen in the first and third micro-dictations.

Have a go at these micro-dictation exercises to hear this expression being used in context – how much can you understand?

Accent: Scotland