Translation guide
A situation where something bad almost happened but was narrowly avoided. In Japanese, this is expressed with various nouns, phrases, and onomatopoeia that emphasize the narrowness of the escape.
Describing a situation where a disaster, accident, or negative outcome was barely avoided.
A common four-character compound meaning 'a close call' or 'a hair's breadth from danger'. Used for dramatic escapes.
That accident was a really close call.
Literally 'the thickness of a sheet of paper'. Used to describe a very fine margin between two outcomes, often in abstract or competitive contexts.
An adverbial phrase meaning 'at the last moment' or 'just barely'. Often used with verbs like 助かる (be saved) or 避ける (avoid).
I avoided the car by a close call.
危機一髪 emphasizes danger and a dramatic escape. 間一髪 focuses on a narrow margin in time or space. 紙一重 is used for very fine distinctions, often in non-life-threatening situations like test scores or quality differences.
My life was saved by a close call.
That was a close call!
I was saved by a hair's breadth.
Similar to 危機一髪 but often implies a narrow escape in terms of timing or space. Literally 'a hair's breadth interval'.
I caught the train by a hair's breadth.
Passing and failing were a close call.
Report near-miss incidents.
We avoided a collision by a hair's breadth.
Their abilities are almost identical (a close call).
We had a close call with that truck.