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By the skin of your teeth

Meaning: By the narrowest possible margin.

Language: English

Literally: By the skin of your teeth

Category: Body & Senses

Origin: From the Book of Job in the 1560 Geneva Bible; since teeth have no skin, the margin of escape is vanishingly thin.

More idioms — Body & Senses

  • Ser uña y carne — To be inseparable; the closest of friends.
  • Fare le corna — To ward off bad luck — or to signal that a partner is being unfaithful.
  • Stare con le mani in mano — To stand around doing nothing while others work.
  • 腹が黒い — Scheming and malicious behind a friendly face.
  • Зарубить на носу — To remember something firmly, once and for all.
  • Iets onder de knie hebben — To have mastered a skill.

More English idioms

  • To rain on someone's parade — To spoil someone's plans or happy moment.
  • To have a chip on your shoulder — To harbor a grudge or a defensive sense of grievance.
  • To cost an arm and a leg — To be extremely expensive.
  • To burn the midnight oil — To work late into the night.
  • Once in a blue moon — Very rarely.
  • To break the ice — To ease the initial tension in a social situation.

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