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Choose the correct definition a, b or c.
a) a boring situation
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b) a narrow escape
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A close shave is a situation where something unpleasant or dangerous nearly happened.
French translation
à un cheveu, on l’a échappé belle !
How NOT to translate : *un rasage de près
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Examples in context
‘Stand-in Australian skipper Steve Smith enjoying close shave with fame
STEVE Smith is loving his time in the spotlight, admitting captaining the Aussie cricket team has brought a different level of celebrity to his day-to-day life.
Smith filled in for Michael Clarke when the star cricketer injured his hamstring.
“I have certainly been noticed a lot more walking down the street, I guess that kind of comes with the territory,” Smith told Confidential.’
The Daily Telegraph, 27 Jan. 2015
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‘Turkish plane skids off runway at Kathmandu airport, close shave for 238 people
KATHMANDU : Nearly 240 people on board a Turkish Airlines jet had a lucky escape when the plane missed the runway on landing in dense fog at the Kathmandu airport on Wednesday and skidded onto nearby grassland.
The Airbus A330 from Istanbul skidded off after over- shooting it at the Tribhuvan International Airport as it missed the central line of the runway while landing.
There were 227 passengers and 11 crew members in the aircraft and all were safely evacuated from the emergency door without any injuries, airport authorities said. ’
The Times of India, 4 March 2015
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Everyday usage
Wow, that was a close shave. I thought the guard would spot us. The speeding car passed only a few inches from us—a real close call.
I had a close shave when a tree fell just where I had been standing.
c) a poor example
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