under way

adjective, adverb

Also, underway. (of a ship) no longer in port, at anchor, etc.; moving.

no longer at rest, stationary, etc.; in motion; traveling: We'll put our bags in the car and be under way.

proceeding; in progress: Plans are under way to sell the company.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

under way

—*adj*
1.	in progress; in operation: the show was under way
2.	nautical in motion

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

under way

In motion, as in The ship got under way at noon. [c. 1930]
Already started, in progress, as in Plans are under way to expand. [c. 1930]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Matching Quote

"One of the great natural phenomena is the way in which a tube of toothpaste suddenly empties itself when it hears that you are planning a trip, so that when you come to pack it is just a twisted shell of its former self, with not even a cubic millimeter left to be squeezed out."

-Robert Benchley