1
general::
Phrase(s): make (an amount of) headway
1. Lit. to move forward. • Even in a light wind, the ship could not make any headway. 2. Fig. to advance toward completing a task. • With the help of Garret, Christopher made a lot of headway on the project.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
Advance, make progress, as in We haven't made any headway with this project. This expression, first recorded in 1887, uses headway in the nautical sense of "a vessel's forward movement."
American Heritage Idioms