LONG SHOT, A Definition & Meaning

long shot, a

Discover More

Idioms and Phrases

A remote possibility of success, as in It's a long shot that Joan will actually finish the marathon , or He may be a good programmer, but he's a long shot for that job . This expression alludes to the inaccuracy of early firearms, which when shot over a distance rarely hit the target. It is commonly used in horseracing for a bet made at great odds. A related phrase is not by a long shot , meaning “not even remotely,” as in I'll never make it to California in three days, not by a long shot . [Late 1800s]

Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

If a candidate was a long shot, a well-delivered blow can hasten their downward spiral—though it probably won’t help the candidate who landed the rhetorical punch.

From

But if the prospect of codifying Roe’s protections in Congress seemed like a long shot a year ago, it is all but impossible to imagine now, with an ascendant far-right bloc in the House and a slim Democratic majority in the Senate.

From

If Macron’s Republic on the Move party loses its majority, Macron could be faced with a fractured and unruly parliament, the need for elaborate negotiations and possibly, although it’s a long shot, a prime minister hostile to his program.

From

The move seemed like a long shot, a bid to extend a career that was realistically probably over.

From

Though it’s a long shot, a Republican who reels in just 34% of the vote — what Trump received in November — could become California’s 41st governor.

From

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Browse

�y��vlog

long shot, a

Idioms and Phrases

Example Sentences