English Explanatory Dictionary

fly by the seat of one's pants

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To pilot an aircraft without the aid of instruments and without a flight plan, using only instinct, visual observation, and practical judgment.
  2. To use one's judgment, initiative, and perceptions as events unfold in order to improvise a course of action without a predetermined plan or without the desirable data inputs to decision making.

Pronunciation

en-au-fly by the seat of one's pants.ogg

Word forms

fly by the seat of one's pants flies by the seat of one's pants flying by the seat of one's pants flew by the seat of one's pants flown by the seat of one's pants

Synonyms

play by ear make it up as one goes along wing it

Related words

in flight on the fly pantser pantsing seat-of-the-pants
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on F Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary