hairsbreadth

[ hairz-bredth, -bretth, -breth ]

noun

1. a very small space or distance:

   We escaped an accident by a hairsbreadth.

adjective

1. extremely narrow or close.

Word History and Origins

Origin of hairsbreadth¹

First recorded in 1575–85

Example Sentences

“This is why last year was much more stressful in many ways. We did come within a hairsbreadth of triaging patients last year.”

From Los Angeles Times

So as Grace passed over the massive Greenland ice sheet, for instance, the leading module would respond to gravitational forces and edge out ahead by a hairsbreadth.

From Salon

Though it lasts only 73 minutes, “Tito” is jammed with enough action, adventure and hairsbreadth escapes to energize a much longer feature.

From Los Angeles Times

Rep. Beto O'Rourke, the Texas Democrat who came within a hairsbreadth of beating Sen. Ted Cruz in the midterm elections last month, came out on top in a recent poll of progressive activists.

From Salon

These factors could already be steering the world ever closer to a new Cuban Missile Crisis, when the world came within a hairsbreadth of nuclear incineration.

From Salon