within an ace of

English

Pronunciation

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Prepositional phrase

within an ace of

1. (slang, idiomatic) Very near; on the point of.

   Synonym: within a whisker of

   • 1867, Ouida [pseudonym; Maria Louise Ramé], “The End of a Ringing Run”, in Under Two Flags: A Story of the Household and the Desert. […], volume I, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, page 119:

     [The horse] falling with a mighty crash, gave him a purler on the opposite side, and was within an ace of striking him dead with his hoof in frantic struggles to recover.

   • 1923, Ernest Bramah, The Eyes of Max Carrados:

     If you have ever been within an ace of a monumental discovery you will understand the torment of anxiety and self-reproach that possessed me.