thisclose
adjEtymology A presentation of the phrase "this close" that intentionally omits the space between the words to demonstrate the degree of closeness.
1
Informal, Nonstandard This close; extremely close.
- JUDY GARLAND was thisclose to signing an exclusive TV contract with NBC, but the deal fell through.1955, Bob Stohl, TV guide: Volume 3, page 27:
- Sources indicate that Danzig is thisclose to signing a new label deal.2001 December 17, CMJ New Music Report, volume 69, number 743, page 10:
3 more examples
- Bridget is the only one at school who knows that I came thisclose to letting Marcus Flutie devirginize me last New Year's Eve.2003, Megan McCafferty, Second Helpings: A Novel, page 80:
- He knew he was thisclose to cuffing Bobbie Faye. Thisclose to keeping her from getting killed in the inevitable cross fire he sensed was coming; he felt it all the way to the cellular level of his bones.2009, Toni McGee Causey, Charmed and Dangerous, page 268:
- If her father knew she was thisclose to a male like that?2015, J. R. Ward, Blood Kiss, page 35: