long shot

noun
1.
a horse, team, etc., that has little chance of winning and carries long odds.
2.
an attempt or undertaking that offers much but in which there is little chance for success.
3.
Movies, Television. a camera shot taken at a relatively great distance from the subject and permitting a broad view of a scene.
Compare closeup (def 2), medium shot.
Idioms
4.
by a long shot, by any means; by a measurable degree:
They haven't finished by a long shot.
Origin
1785-95
Examples from the web for long shot
  • We see the prison buildings in a long shot from the air.
  • However, the news is not all doom and gloom by a long shot.
  • However, in any marriage it is a long shot that both partners will be completely satisfied in their vocational arrangements.
  • How weak to try to attach a ridiculous claim to a post that never made any statement of the sort, not by a long shot.
  • It isn't bad by a long shot, but far from leading the pack in terms of quality.
  • Not by a long shot, but without something suitable as a replacement, it seems a necessary evil.
  • The gist of a lot of the posts seems to be it's a long shot but more power to them.
  • When it comes to radical energy solutions, an extreme long shot is a nuclear power scheme that would combine fusion and fission.
  • Although a long shot, it's not inconceivable to consider dire consequences to an ecosystem built on diatoms.
  • All that you have demonstrated is that scientists have committed immoral acts, not the same by a long shot.
British Dictionary definitions for long shot

long shot

noun
1.
a competitor, as in a race, considered to be unlikely to win
2.
a bet against heavy odds
3.
an undertaking, guess, or possibility with little chance of success
4.
(films, television) a shot where the camera is or appears to be distant from the object to be photographed
5.
by a long shot, by any means: he still hasn't finished by a long shot
Word Origin and History for long shot
n.

in the figurative sense of "something unlikely," 1867, from long (adj.) + shot (n.). The notion is of a shot at a target from a great distance, thus difficult to make. Cinematic sense is from 1922.

Slang definitions & phrases for long shot

long shot

modifier

: a long-shot victory

noun phrase
  1. A person, horse, project, etc, that seems not likely to win or succeed; dark horse: But it's a pretty long shot I'm afraid (1869+)
  2. A scene photographed from a distance; a long-range photograph (1940s+)
Related Terms

not by a long shot