Phrase origin

Posted by Henry on May 27, 2003

In Reply to: Phrase origin posted by Neville Henry on May 27, 2003

: Greetings
: could anyone tell me the meaning and origin of "down to the wire"

It is commonly attributed to race courses, where a wire above the finishing line helped judges decide results. Close events thus went down to the wire.

• Phrase origin Autumn 05/27/03