AT SEA

(1) {adv.} or {adj. phr.} 1. On an ocean voyage; on a journey by ship. * /They had first met at sea./ 2. Out on the ocean; away from land. * /By the second day the ship was well out at sea./ * /Charles had visited a ship in dock, but he had never been on a ship at sea./ (2) {adj. phr.} Not knowing what to do; bewildered; confused; lost. * /The job was new to him, and for a few days he was at sea./ * /When his friends talked about chemistry, Don was at sea, because he did not study chemistry./ Compare: AT A LOSS.