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一足違い (ひとあしちがい) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

一ひと足あし違ちがい

ひ

と

あ

し

ち

が

い

Meanings

1

noun

barely missing; just missing

Used when someone just misses a person, train, bus, etc. by a narrow margin. Often appears in phrases like 一足違いで会えなかった or 一足違いで乗り遅れた.

彼かれは一ひと足あし違ちがいで電でん車しゃに乗のり遅おくれた。
He missed the train by a hair's breadth.
一ひと足あし違ちがいで友とも達だちに会あえなかっ

た

。

I just missed my friend.

Written forms

一ひと足あし違ちがい
Standard kanji spelling.
ひと足あし違ちがい
Mixed kana-kanji spelling, also common.

Kanji

一one, one radical (no.1)
足leg, foot, be sufficient
違difference, differ

Similar words

すれ違ちがい
すれ違い focuses on passing each other without meeting, while 一足違い emphasizes the narrow timing gap.
間かん一いっ髪ぱつ
間一髪 means a very close call or narrow escape from danger, whereas 一足違い is specifically about missing a meeting or transport by a small time difference.

Etymology

Compound of 一足 (ひとあし, 'one step') and 違い (ちがい, 'difference'), literally 'a difference of one step', referring to a narrow miss in timing.