wheelhouse

noun

wheel·​house ˈ(h)wēl-ˌhau̇s 

plural wheelhouses

1

: pilothouse

Looking out at the all-but-empty bay from the wheelhouse of the new 28-foot research boat …

—Bill Nemitz

He climbed a rickety rope ladder to the ship's deck, then another five flights of stairs to the wheelhouse.

—Daniel Machalaba

2

: a place or center of control or leadership (as in an organization)

But while there was momentary calm in the wheelhouse, there was still a real question whether anyone was really in command of the administration's foreign-policy machinery.

—David Gelman et al.

3

US

a

baseball : the section of the strike zone where it is easiest for the batter to hit the ball well

The home run came on a 3–2 pitch. [Danny] Graves tried to get Jenkins with a sinker. "It was right in his wheelhouse," Graves said.

—John Fay

b

: an area that matches a person's skills or expertise

… he was right in his wheelhouse—politics is where [Stephen] Colbert soars.

—Adam Chitwood

Examples of wheelhouse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Billy Bob Thornton wrote the screenplay, based on his own mother (who Thornton, amusingly, insisted had ESP), but the movie has less of the darkness of Sling Blade and more of the whodunit cheese that’s much more in Raimi’s wheelhouse. —Tim Grierson, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2024

Ever since, my unsolicited take to colleagues on the debate fallout has gone like this: The Biden presidency is now like James Cameron’s Titanic during the wheelhouse scene after the iceberg strike. —James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 July 2024

The bridge deck has a large seating area perfect for cinema viewing, a discreet and convenient day head, captain's quarters, and the wheelhouse. —Kathleen Turner, Forbes, 21 Sep. 2024

Around him were signs of attentive upkeep: new hoses, valves and a hydraulic pump; fresh upholstery on the wheelhouse bench; a new computer monitor connected to a satellite navigation system. —C.j. Chivers James Patrick Cronin Elena Hecht Anna Diamond Quinton Kamara, New York Times, 6 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1824, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

wheelhouse

noun

wheel·​house -ˌhau̇s 

1

: pilothouse

2

: the place of control or leadership (as in an organization)

3

: an area that matches a person's skills or expertise