uncharted waters
Never been mapped
Uncharted waters are areas of sea not yet mapped or surveyed—dangerous because hidden hazards are unknown.
The phrase is now almost always figurative, describing unfamiliar territory or unprecedented situations: The company is entering uncharted waters with this merger.
After the diagnosis, we were in uncharted waters.
- unexploredNot yet investigated
- unmappedLacking cartographic representation
- terra incognitaUnexplored or unknown region
- voyageJourney by sea
- untraveledNever having journeyed
discovery · unknown · adventure · polar exploration · journey · leap of faith · pioneering · trailblazer · Northwest Passage · Age of Exploration · frontiersmen · exploratory · cartography · navigation · sea routes · sailing · mystery · risk
- explorationexploration, explore, expedition, expeditions, voyage
- seafaringship, sailors, ships, sail, sailor
- Nautical Idiomsbatten down the hatches, all hands on deck, smooth sailing, three sheets to the wind, in the same boat
- sea idiomsall at sea, smooth sailing, sink or swim, miss the boat, rock the boat
- travel idiomshit the road, in the same boat, miss the boat, end of the road, crossroads
- unexplored placesdeep sea, unmapped, undiscovered, deep ocean, cave systems
uncharted watershome turf
One's established domain
known quantities · beaten path · comfort zone · old stomping grounds · second nature
uncharted waterssafe harbor
Protected place for vessels
sure thing · solid ground · firm footing · smooth sailing · clear sailing
uncharted waterstried and true
Proven reliable over time
beaten path · old hat · same old same old · business as usual · status quo
water, chart, waters, charting, charted, uncharted, unchartered