at sea
Idioms-
Aboard a ship, on the ocean, as in Within a few hours the ship would be out at sea . During World War II a famous American newscaster addressed his radio broadcasts to listeners everywhere, including “all the ships at sea.” [1300s]
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Also, all at sea . Perplexed, bewildered, as in She was all at sea in these new surroundings . This idiom transfers the condition of a vessel that has lost its bearings to the human mind. Charles Dickens used it in Little Dorrit (1855): “Mrs. Tickit ... was so plainly at sea on this part of the case.” [Second half of 1700s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On Sunday, Iranian state TV said an oil tanker in the strait was struck while attempting to "illegally" pass through and was sinking, showing footage of a burning tanker at sea.
From Barron's
After often years at sea, adult Atlantic salmon swim thousands of miles to return to the chalk streams where they were born.
From BBC
Much of the anticipated surplus remains outside major pricing hubs, with Russian, Iranian, and Venezuelan barrels accumulating on tankers at sea.
Partridge had heard Kate’s spirits make the sounds of a ship at sea and had watched as furniture mysteriously drifted about the parlor.
From Literature
Some of her work involved measuring the precise contours of the Earth, on land and at sea, allowing for the effects of tides and other forces.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
