within an ace of doing something

within an ace of (doing) (something)

Extremely close to doing, achieving, or obtaining something, typically having failed by a very narrow margin. I came within an ace of winning that race, but I guess I'll have to settle for second place. They were within an ace of defeat when the quarterback threw a Hail Mary for a last-second touchdown. Crude oil prices came within an ace of $80 a barrel on Friday, threatening to plunge markets further into recession around the globe.

See also: ace, an, of, within

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

within an ace of something/of doing something

(British English) very close to something: We came within an ace of victory.

See also: ace, an, of, something, within

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

within an ace of (doing) something

mod. very close to doing something. We were within an ace of beating the all-time record.

See also: ace, an, of, something, within

McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.