within an inch of one's life

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English

[edit]

Pronunciation

[edit]

Prepositional phrase

[edit]

within an inch of one's life

  1. To a point where one is at great risk of death; or (figuratively, hyperbolic) of severe danger or trouble.
    Synonym: (obsolete) within an inch of one's skin
  2. (figuratively, hyperbolic) Almost as much as possible; to an extreme extent.
    • 2000, Dana Stabenow, Midnight Come Again, New York, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Minotaur, →ISBN, page 77:
      Every drawer had the names of the tools inside written on the front. There were also several parts lockers; they too were labeled and organized within an inch of their lives.

Translations

[edit]

See also

[edit]

Further reading

[edit]