miss

Good golly. Miss Molly!

Inf. Good grief!; Wow! Good golly, Miss Molly! This place is a mess! Good golly, Miss Molly, that's awful!

See also: good

have a near miss

Fig. to nearly crash or collide. The airplanes—flying much too close—had a near miss. I had a near miss with a bike while driving over here.

See also: have, near

hit and miss and hit or miss

carelessly; aimlessly; without plan or direction. There was no planning. It was just hit and miss. We handed out the free tickets hit or miss. Some people got one. Others got five or six.

See also: and, hit

miss (something) by a mile

Fig. to fail to hit something by a great distance; to land wide of the mark. Ann shot the arrow and missed the target by a mile. "Good grief, you missed by a mile," shouted Sally.

See also: mile

miss a trick

Fig. to miss an opportunity or chance. (*Typically with the negative.) She hardly ever misses a trick. Mr. Big never misses a trick. How did a smart guy like you miss a trick like that?

See also: trick

miss is as good as a mile

Prov. Almost having done something is the same as not having done it at all, since in both cases the thing does not get done. We only missed the train by one minute? Well, a miss is as good as a mile.

See also: good, mile

miss out (on something) and lose out (on something)

to fail to participate in something; to fail to take part in something. I'm sorry I missed out on the ice cream. I lost out on getting in the class photo because I was sick that day.

See also: out

miss the boat 

1. Lit. to miss out (on something); to be ignorant (of something). Pay attention, John, or you'll miss the boat and not learn algebra. Tom really missed the boat when it came to making friends.

2. Fig. to have made an error; to be wrong. If you think you can do that, you have just missed the boat. The guy's missed the boat. He's a lunkhead.

See also: boat

miss the point

to fail to understand the important part of something. I'm afraid you missed the point. Let me explain it again. You keep explaining, and I keep missing the point.

See also: point

not miss something for the world and not miss something for love nor money

Fig. would not miss something for any reason at all. Of course I'll be at your wedding. I wouldn't miss it for the world.

See also: world

not miss much and not miss a thing 

1. Inf. not to miss observing any part of what is going on. (Usually with do as in the examples.) Ted doesn't miss much. He is very alert. The puppy doesn't miss a thing. He sees every move you make.

2. Inf. not to miss experiencing something that really was not worth experiencing anyway. (Usually with do as in the examples.) I missed the big sales meeting last week, but I understand I didn't miss much. Bill: I didn't see that new movie that is showing at the theater. Tom: You didn't miss much; it was pretty bad.

See also: much

one's heart misses a beat and one's heart skips a beat

Fig. one's heart flutters or palpitates; one has a strong emotional reaction. Whenever I'm near you, my heart skips a beat. When the racehorse fell, my heart missed a beat.

See also: beat, heart

You never miss the water till the well runs dry.

Prov. People are not grateful for what they have until they lose it. Jill: I never realized what a good friend Jeanie was until she moved away. Jane: You never miss the water till the well runs dry.

See also: dry, never, run, till, water, well

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not miss a trick

to not fail to notice and use a good opportunity You can rely on Sarah to get what she wants, she never misses a trick.

See also: trick

somebody's heart misses/skips a beat

if someone's heart misses a beat, they suddenly feel so excited or frightened that their heart beats faster Ben walked into the room and her heart skipped a beat.

See also: beat, heart

A miss is as good as a mile.

something that you say which means that failing to do something when you almost succeeded is no better than failing very badly I've tried to reassure him that he only failed by three percent but the way he sees it, a miss is as good as a mile.

See also: good, mile

a near miss

a situation in which an accident or unpleasant situation almost happened and was only just avoided I managed to brake just in time but it was a near miss.

See also: near

give something a miss  (informal)

to not take part in an activity I think I'll give the barbecue a miss. I'm on a diet.

See also: give

hit and/or miss

if something is hit and miss, you cannot be certain of its quality because it is sometimes good and sometimes bad We used a cheap printer, but the quality was a bit hit or miss. Weather forecasting used to be a very hit-and-miss affair.

See also: and, hit

miss the boat

to be too late to get something that you want Anyone still hoping for concert tickets will discover they have missed the boat. I sent off my university application at the last minute and nearly missed the boat.

See also: boat

miss the point

to fail to understand what is important about something I think you've missed the point. It's not the money that's the problem, it's the fact that she's not consulting him when she spends it.

See also: point

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hit or miss also hit and miss

not planned carefully and as likely to be bad as to be good Hiring has often been hit or miss – we never really knew whether a person was qualified until after they started working here.

See also: hit

miss out (on something)

to fail to use or enjoy an opportunity Other people my age are married and have families, and I am beginning to feel I am missing out. We missed out on a chance to get a cheaper mortgage.

See also: out

miss the boat

1. to lose an opportunity that could lead to success He thinks we're missing the boat on improving relations with Russia.

2. to not understand the importance of something I believe that people who think this issue is simply going to disappear have missed the boat.

See also: boat

miss the point

to fail to understand what is important about something In case anyone missed the point of its weapons tests, the military practiced an island invasion the next month.

See also: point

not miss a beat also not skip a beat

to not pause George didn't miss a beat when we asked him what kind of car we should buy for our daughter. Even when she's asked embarrassing questions, she doesn't skip a beat.

Usage notes: sometimes used in the form without missing a beat: Ella forgot the words she had memorized but, without missing a beat, she made up new ones.

Etymology: based on the idea of the regular beat of music or the heart

See also: beat

you can't miss it (spoken)

it is very easy to find To get to the church, go to the next traffic light and make a left – you can't miss it.