close, but no cigar
phrase/ˈkləʊs bʌt nəʊ sɪˈɡɑː/UK/ˈkloʊs bʌt noʊ sɪˈɡɑɹ/US
Etymology
From the practice of giving cigars as prizes at carnivals in the United States in the 20th century; those who did not win would fail to receive a cigar, even if they came close.
Definitions
Used to indicate that one is almost correct or has almost succeeded, but not quite.
- Betty ran all out in the sprint race; yet, it was close, but no cigar.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for close, but no cigar. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA