near miss

noun

variants or less commonly near-miss

1

a

: a miss (as with a bomb) close enough to cause damage

b

: something that falls just short of success

2

a

: a near collision (as between aircraft)

b

: close call

Synonyms of near miss

• narrow escape
• close call
• hairbreadth escape
• close shave
• near escape

Examples of near miss in a Sentence

After years of near misses, the team has finally won a championship.

a near miss with death prompted him to give up skydiving

Recent Examples on the Web

At least two ships were hit in the Strait of Hormuz in the past week, while several others reported near misses or warnings from entities claiming to represent Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, according to maritime data company Lloyd’s List Intelligence. — ABC News, 7 Aug. 2026

Lawler has also become outspoken about sharing Littleton's experience, saying utilities can learn from one another when attacks or near misses occur. — Aaron Parseghian, CBS News, 4 Aug. 2026

After years of uncertainty about how a near miss with a near-Earth asteroid actually plays out, major space agencies are now ready to watch, listen and learn with multiple missions to monitor the event. — Andrew Jones, Scientific American, 30 July 2026

Cockpit alarms blared as two Delta Air Lines jets narrowly avoided each other over Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport during a frightening near miss now under federal investigation. — Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 29 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1940, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for near miss

• abyss
• amiss
• chlamys
• dismiss
• premiss
• remiss
• bis
• bliss
• criss
• dis
• diss
• hiss