C1idiominformalsuccessIELTS-friendly
a long shot
USUK
an attempt or guess that has very little chance of success
Often 'It's a long shot, but…' before a hopeful attempt.
In context
It's a long shot, but I've applied for a job at a big tech firm in Singapore.
Winning the competition was always a long shot, but we learned a lot.
More idioms about success
- a blessing in disguisesomething that seems bad at first but later brings a good result
- a Pyrrhic victorya win that costs so much that it is hardly worth winning
- against all oddsalthough success seemed very unlikely
- back to square oneback at the start, because an earlier attempt has failed
- bear fruitto finally produce good results after a lot of effort or time