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Glite Dictionary
within an ace

within an ace

8.8
Almost happening or being done but not yet
  • idiom
  • UK
translation icon : a un paso de
  • You are within an ace of winning.
  • came within an ace

Examples

  • Philip Doddridge of Richmond came "within an ace of meeting the dreadful fate of being buried alive" ("Burying Alive 2" 2).

    Academic text (2014)

  • The team was within an ace of victory, but they lost in the final seconds.

  • He realized he was within an ace of being killed.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • She was within an ace of failing the exam after forgetting to study.

  • He came within an ace of losing his job when he missed the deadline.

Synonyms

on the verge of
vswithin an ace
144 3.8

Very close to doing or feeling something

leans toward danger or serious outcomes rather than neutral immediacy
near
vswithin an ace
111 1.0

Almost happening or becoming true

carries stronger sense of danger or critical closeness rather than mere approximation
on the edge of
vswithin an ace
20 3.9

Very close to achieving something important

emphasizes closeness to negative or critical events rather than general importance
within an ace of
vswithin an ace
  • UK
8.4

Very nearly achieving something

adds focus on negative or critical outcomes rather than neutral ones
ames ace
vswithin an ace
  • Informal
9.9

Almost succeeding but failing at the last moment

refers to closeness to an event, often undesirable, not specifically failing

Antonyms

far
∞ 1.0

A long way away in space

distantly
9 3.8

From far away in place, time, or family connection

How Close

within an ace
  • UK
8.8
imminent
168 4.8
near
240 1.0

Surface Forms

within an ace positive

Morphology

within + an + ace

The phrase 'within an ace (of)' means 'very close to', but this sense does not follow transparently from 'within' (inside) plus 'ace' (typically 'expert' or 'one' in cards) for a B1 learner. The marginal/measure sense of 'ace' is historical and idiomatic, so knowing the literal constituents would not reliably lead learners to the MWE meaning.

Etymology

The phrase within an ace may come from old card or ball games where an ace was just one point. If you were 'within an ace' you were only one point away from winning or losing, so today it means being 'very close' to something.