hairbreadth

noun hair·breadth \ ˈher-ˌbretth , -ˌbreth , -ˌbredth \

variants: or hairsbreadth play \ˈherz-ˌbretth, -ˌbreth, -ˌbredth\

Updated on: 30 Mar 2018

Definition of hairbreadth

: a very small distance or margin

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Examples of hairbreadth in a Sentence

just missed the bull's-eye by a hairbreadth

Recent Examples of hairbreadth from the Web

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, "In Mexican Election, Governing Party Is Poised for a Narrow Win," 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, "The Return of Civil Disobedience," 9 Jan. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hairbreadth.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.