“By the Skin of Your Teeth”: Meaning, Examples and Sentences

Elaboration and Examples:

“By the Skin of Your Teeth” is a fascinating idiom that refers to a near-miss escape from danger or difficulty. Though its origin remains uncertain, it is thought to have been derived from a verse in the Book of Job, where the author uses the phrase to describe a very narrow escape.

This expression is commonly used to depict situations where an individual manages to avoid an adverse outcome by the slightest margin, such as passing a test by a hair’s breadth or evading a collision by a split second. The idiom suggests that the person’s survival was largely a matter of good fortune, rather than their own ability or expertise.

Imagine that you’re taking a difficult exam, and you’re not sure if you’ll pass. When you get your results, you see that you’ve barely scraped by with a passing grade. You might say that you passed “By the Skin of Your Teeth,” meaning that you barely managed to pass the exam.

Another example could be if you’re driving on a narrow road, and a large truck suddenly swerves into your lane. You manage to swerve out of the way just in time to avoid a collision. You could say that you avoided the accident “By the Skin of Your Teeth,” indicating that you only narrowly escaped a potentially dangerous situation.

The use of this phrase adds color and intensity to the description of a close call, making it a vivid and memorable way to convey the precariousness of a situation.

Sentences on “By the Skin of Your Teeth”