Meaning:Narrowly; barely. Usually used in regard to a narrow escape from a disaster.
Origin:
The phrase first appears in English in the Geneva Bible, 1560, in Job 19:20.
Teeth don't have skin, of course, so the writer may have been alluding to the teeth's surface or simply to a notional minute measure.
The expression could be derived from the fact that there is no skin on the teeth and so 'Escape by the skin of one's teeth' means to avoid a catastrophy by the very smallest margin.
Or it could be that Job was referring to his gums because that was the only part of his body that was not covered with painful boils.
Sources:
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/83000.html
http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question18459.html
No comments:
Post a Comment