in the pipeline
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
In one of the bloodiest weeks in its history, the BBC announced that it intended to cut jobs by more than 1,000.
Just last week, the firm opened a permanent office in Abu Dhabi, under the name J&F Johnston (Emirates).
British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review.
Common questions
What does “in the pipeline” mean?
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
Is “in the pipeline” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.