not have an earthly chance
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Also, stand no earthly chance. Have no chance whatever, as in She doesn't have an earthly chance of getting into medical school, or Bill stands no earthly chance of winning the lottery. The use of no earthly in the sense of “no conceivable” dates from the mid-1700s.
QUIZ
QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!
Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.
Question 1 of 7
“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.
Words nearby not have an earthly chance
not give someone the time of day, not half bad, no thanks to, not have a bean, not have a clue, not have an earthly chance, not have anything on, not have it, not have one's heart in it, not have the heart to, not having any
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.