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
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
Now under the leadership of Pierre Sage, Lens are hoping to finally get over the line, after those painful near misses.
—
Tom Burrows, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth survived a near miss last year after a group of high-level national-security officials erroneously added The Atlantic’s editor in chief to a private Signal group chat, where Hegseth shared military attack plans.
—Mark Leibovich, The Atlantic, 31 Jan. 2026
Still, despite these questions, unlike the previous three seasons of near misses, where Arsenal finished second to a more relentless rival, there is no real candidate who looks capable of unseating them this time.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
After two near misses on the Gophers empty net, Minnesota had a flutter in front of the Spartans goal in the final 10 seconds that went for naught before the final horn.
—Staff Report, Twin Cities, 24 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for near miss
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.
Tom Burrows, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2026
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth survived a near miss last year after a group of high-level national-security officials erroneously added The Atlantic’s editor in chief to a private Signal group chat, where Hegseth shared military attack plans.
—Mark Leibovich, The Atlantic, 31 Jan. 2026
Still, despite these questions, unlike the previous three seasons of near misses, where Arsenal finished second to a more relentless rival, there is no real candidate who looks capable of unseating them this time.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
After two near misses on the Gophers empty net, Minnesota had a flutter in front of the Spartans goal in the final 10 seconds that went for naught before the final horn.
—Staff Report, Twin Cities, 24 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for near miss
Cite this Entry
“Near miss.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/near%20miss. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
