close shave
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of close shave
An Americanism dating back to 1825–35
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As fewer and fewer men opt for a close shave, the 25-year-old Kabul barber said he was already losing business.
From Barron's ● Feb. 19, 2026
In St. Louis, setting up the stage at the bottom of an amphitheater-like glen avoided that problem, but squeezing it into that spot was a worrisomely close shave.
From New York Times ● Jul. 29, 2021
He takes hot showers before shaving, uses shaving cream and tries to get a close shave but none of it helps.
From Slate ● Feb. 18, 2020
The most common combination: The BARbados-BERmuda match was a close shave, won by a whisker, a hairy competition, lots of clipping calls, point shaving, etc. etc. etc.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 15, 2018
The waiters have those soda jerk caps set at an angle, and the right haircuts, a close shave up the back of the neck.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
