by the skin of one's teeth

Idioms and Phrases

Just barely, very narrowly, as in Doug passed the exam by the skin of his teeth . A related term appears in the Bible (Job 19:20), where Job says, “I am escaped with the skin of my teeth,” presumably meaning he got away with nothing at all. Today the phrase using by is used most often to describe a narrow escape. [c. 1600] Also see squeak through .

Example Sentences

Examples of Hebrew idiom that have become English via the Bible include: "to set one's teeth on edge", "by the skin of one's teeth", "the land of the living" and "from strength to strength".

From BBC

Related Words

• firmly
• hard
• intently
• intimately
• jointly
• meticulously
• scrupulously
• sharply
• strictly
• thoughtfully