outside chance
6
3.5
- noun
- Informal
:
posibilidad remota
- The electoral college total will most likely be between 277 and 289, with an outside chance of 337 or higher.
- always an outside chance
- just on the outside chance
- even an outside chance
But if on the on the outside chance they do not institute my plan.
- But if on the on the outside chance they do not institute my plan.
- I don't think anybody really has an outside chance of competing with those two at all.
Examples
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There's an outside chance that we might need to destroy them.
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There's even an outside chance they'll wrest back control of the House.
Blog text (4) -
Of course, there is one outside chance for a cure.
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You know that outside chance of a cancellation?
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The Rays still have an outside chance in the wild card chase.
Blog text (30) -
I don't think anybody really has an outside chance of competing with those two at all.
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Unfortunately, the magic ride has fallen short over the past few weeks, deflating their outside chance at the Rose Bowl.
Blog text (24) -
There's an outside chance that they could end up together again at the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York next month.
Blog text (4) -
There is always the outside chance Obama will come up with something from outside the box that will blunt Romney's momentum.
Blog text (30) -
Despite the odds, there is still an outside chance that they could win the championship.
Synonyms
58
4.6
An unlikely attempt that is still worth trying
10
3.4
A very small possibility that something will happen
2
8.1
A way to say something is very unlikely to happen
Antonyms
How Likely
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a very small or unlikely possibility' can be inferred because 'outside' metaphorically marks something as beyond the normal/likely range and so modifies 'chance' to mean an unlikely possibility. However, this is a figurative extension rather than a strictly compositional pattern and relies on collocational usage that may not be fully predictable for B1 learners, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
The expression outside chance paints a simple picture: a chance standing outside the room of events that are likely to happen. Because the chance is 'outside' the main group it is small and hard to reach, so the phrase means 'a very small or unlikely possibility'.