一いっ髪ぱつ

noun

hair's breadth; hair

Literally 'one hair'. In modern Japanese, it is almost exclusively used in the set phrase 危機一髪 (ききいっぱつ), meaning 'a close call' or 'by a hair's breadth'. The standalone noun use is rare and mostly found in classical or literary contexts.

• 危き機き一いっ髪ぱつのところで助たすかった。

  I was saved by a hair's breadth.

• 「一いっ髪ぱつ」という言こと葉ばは、現げん代だいではほとんど「危き機き一いっ髪ぱつ」の中なかでしか見みかけない。

  The word 一髪 is almost never seen outside of 危機一髪 in modern Japanese.