down-to-the-wire

down to the wire

Until the last possible second. Negotiations went down to the wire, but we did in fact agree on a new contract by the deadline. I expect this game to go down to the wire, with the winner being whoever has possession at the final whistle. Next time, please don't wait until we're down to the wire to make up your mind.

See also: down, to, wire

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

*down-to-the-wire

Fig. waiting until the very last moment; right up to the deadline. (*Typically: be ~; get ~.) It came down-to-the-wire before I turned the proposal in. We went right down-to-the-wire on that one.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.