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Synonyms

close shave

American  
[klohs] / kloʊs /

noun

Informal.

  1. a narrow escape from serious danger or trouble.

    We weren't hit when the truck swerved at us, but it was a close shave.
close shave British  
/ kləʊs /

noun

  1. informal a narrow escape

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
close shave Idioms  

  1. see close call.

Etymology

Origin of close shave

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As fewer and fewer men opt for a close shave, the 25-year-old Kabul barber said he was already losing business.

From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026

The close shave appeared to refocus Ireland, who moved up the pitch and knocked on the door for 10 minutes before Jamison Gibson-Park's smart inside ball sent Van der Flier crashing across the line.

From BBC • Mar. 19, 2022

In St. Louis, setting up the stage at the bottom of an amphitheater-like glen avoided that problem, but squeezing it into that spot was a worrisomely close shave.

From New York Times • Jul. 29, 2021

I am capable of a very close shave.

From Slate • Apr. 8, 2021

The waiters have those soda jerk caps set at an angle, and the right haircuts, a close shave up the back of the neck.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.