hairbreadth
1 of 2noun
hair·breadth ˈher-ˌbretth 
-ˌbreth,
-ˌbredth
variants or hairsbreadth
ˈherz-ˌbretth
-ˌbreth,
-ˌbredth
: a very small distance or margin
hairbreadth
2 of 2adjective
: very narrow : close
a hairbreadth escape
Synonyms
Noun
- ace
- hair
- hairline
- hop, skip, and jump
- inch
- neck
- shouting distance
- step
- stone's throw
Adjective
- close
- down-to-the-wire
- narrow
- neck and neck
- nip and tuck
- tight
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun just missed the bull's-eye by a hairbreadth Adjective a hairbreadth victory, but a victory nevertheless
Recent Examples on the Web
Kirk Semple And Marina Franco, New York Times, 4 June 2017 The year closed with the hairbreadth victory of a law-and-order Presidential nominee whose Southern strategy of racial politicking remade the electoral map. Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker, 9 Jan. 2017 Andrew Cockburn, Harper’s Magazine , 20 July 2022 That mad quest for immortality is only one thread in an intricate narrative that encompasses witchcraft, impossible transformations, hairbreadth escapes, killer clowns and an assortment of innovative murders. Washington Post, 28 Nov. 2021 Nancy Pelosi will have a hairbreadth four-vote majority in the House with two seats still undecided. Walter Shapiro, The New Republic, 17 Dec. 2020 The hairbreadth outcome in the race belied its sweeping consequences. Author: Alexander Burns And Jonathan Martin, Anchorage Daily News, 14 Mar. 2018 See More
Noun
Should the electoral officials’ math hold up, the hairbreadth victory is likely to provide only limited comfort to Mr. del Mazo’s party. Kirk Semple And Marina Franco, New York Times, 4 June 2017 The year closed with the hairbreadth victory of a law-and-order Presidential nominee whose Southern strategy of racial politicking remade the electoral map. Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker, 9 Jan. 2017 Adjective
In the end, Cuellar and his corporate backers carried the day (one marked also by the Uvalde school massacre), albeit by a hairbreadth margin. Andrew Cockburn, Harper’s Magazine , 20 July 2022 That mad quest for immortality is only one thread in an intricate narrative that encompasses witchcraft, impossible transformations, hairbreadth escapes, killer clowns and an assortment of innovative murders. Washington Post, 28 Nov. 2021 Nancy Pelosi will have a hairbreadth four-vote majority in the House with two seats still undecided. Walter Shapiro, The New Republic, 17 Dec. 2020 The hairbreadth outcome in the race belied its sweeping consequences. Author: Alexander Burns And Jonathan Martin, Anchorage Daily News, 14 Mar. 2018 See More Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1561, in the meaning defined above
Adjective
1604, in the meaning defined above
hairbreadths
noun
variants or hairsbreadths
as in inches
a very small distance or degree just missed the bull's-eye by a hairbreadth Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- inches
- steps
- aces
- hairs
- necks
- stone's throws
- bits
- minims
- smidgeons
- smidgins
- hairlines
- traces
- particles
- trifles
- iotas
- crumbs
- mites
- dabs
- jots
- smidges
- smidgens
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- long hauls
- miles
- country miles
- infinities
- light-years