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win by a nose

[/wɪn baɪ ə noʊz/]
verb phrase
vencer por uma margem muito pequena; ganhar por um triz
1. To win a competition or race by a very small margin; to succeed with difficulty and narrowly
The horse won by a nose in the final seconds of the race.
O cavalo venceu por um triz nos últimos segundos da corrida.
2. To narrowly defeat someone or barely accomplish something
She won the election by a nose, receiving just a few more votes than her opponent.
Ela venceu a eleição por uma margem muito pequena, recebendo apenas alguns votos a mais que seu oponente.
NYC Slang
Win by a hair; Edge out someone
Synonyms
win by a hairwin by a whiskerwin by a narrow marginbarely winscrape bysqueeze by
Antonyms
losewin by a landslidewin decisivelywin hands down

Regional Variations

General Brazilian
vencer por um triz; vencer por pouco
Common in sports commentary and general usage
São Paulo
ganhar por uma margem muito pequena
Neutral, formal usage in news and business contexts
Portugal
vencer por um fio; ganhar por pouco
Common in sports reporting; 'por um fio' is particularly used in European Portuguese

Related Idioms & Phrases

photo finish
close call
nail-biter
down to the wire
win by a hair's breadth
come up short
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