as in winds
an air movement that is blowing toward something (such as a ship or an airplane) as it moves forward
Stiff headwinds caused the flight to take longer than expected.
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Recent Examples of headwinds
What was once a rapidly accelerating movement now faces significant headwinds, with both external and internal pressures threatening to stall progress.
—
Heather V. MacArthur, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
But across the income spectrum, retail sales data shows consumers show no sign of slowing even as economic headwinds pile up.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2025
Chappell cited ongoing demand headwinds that could affect FedEx's near-term earnings estimates for his downgrade.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
Continue reading … -- POLITICS TOP ‘DOGE’ – Elon Musk says government cuts are necessary but faces headwinds, according to FOX poll.
—Fox News, 21 Mar. 2025
FedEx navigated through bottom-line headwinds such as the end of its air cargo contract with the United States Postal Service (USPS) last fall, resulting in a $180 million hit to operating income, Subramaniam said in the call.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 21 Mar. 2025
The company anticipates that search advertising revenue will turn positive only in the second half of 2025, suggesting that these headwinds may persist through the first half of this year, thereby impacting overall revenue growth.
—Trefis Team, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
Heather V. MacArthur, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
But across the income spectrum, retail sales data shows consumers show no sign of slowing even as economic headwinds pile up.
—Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 17 Sep. 2025
Chappell cited ongoing demand headwinds that could affect FedEx's near-term earnings estimates for his downgrade.
—Lisa Kailai Han, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025
Continue reading … -- POLITICS TOP ‘DOGE’ – Elon Musk says government cuts are necessary but faces headwinds, according to FOX poll.
—Fox News, 21 Mar. 2025
FedEx navigated through bottom-line headwinds such as the end of its air cargo contract with the United States Postal Service (USPS) last fall, resulting in a $180 million hit to operating income, Subramaniam said in the call.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 21 Mar. 2025
The company anticipates that search advertising revenue will turn positive only in the second half of 2025, suggesting that these headwinds may persist through the first half of this year, thereby impacting overall revenue growth.
—Trefis Team, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for headwinds
winds
Noun
-
As of Wednesday evening, Gabrielle was churning nearly 900 miles from the Caribbean’s northern Leeward Islands with sustained winds of 50 mph.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
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Yancey was one of at least five Western North Carolina counties that never issued evacuation orders ahead of remnants of Hurricane Helene reaching North Carolina, even though federal forecasters warned that historic, life-threatening and catastrophic flooding, landslides and winds were ahead.—
Nora O'Neill,
Charlotte Observer,
18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Headwinds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/headwinds. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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