close call

noun

: a narrow escape

Examples of close call in a Sentence

We nearly didn't get out of the burning building. It was a pretty close call, let me tell you! the doctor said I'd had a close call, and was lucky to be alive
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
However, in the prime of their careers, this wouldn't even be a close call. Matt Levine, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 June 2025 Both players and umpires also have informally raised the possibility of ABS including a buffer zone that would allow certain close calls to stand even if they are overturned by the system. Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 19 May 2025 A couple of close calls evoke iconic sequences, including one gruesome closing nod to the series’s highpoint, Final Destination 2. Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 May 2025 In the months since, multiple close calls and other crashes, as well as technology failures that led to delays and cancellations at Newark airport spurred officials to act. Jaclyn Diaz, NPR, 8 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for close call

Word History

First Known Use

1881, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of close call was in 1881

Cite this Entry

“Close call.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/close%20call. Accessed 29 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

close call

noun
: a narrow escape
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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