kloʊs bʌt noʊ sɪˈɡɑr
General
informal
intermediate
- Literally:
- Nearly winning but not receiving the cigar prize
What does "close but no cigar" mean?
- Almost correct or successful, but not quite
- A near miss; falling just short of success
Examples
- You almost got the answer right—close but no cigar.
- The team came close but no cigar in the championship.
- I thought I'd nailed the interview, but close but no cigar.
Origin
From American carnival games in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, where cigars were common prizes. Players who came close to winning but didn't were told 'close, but no cigar.'
How to use it
Casual expression often used with sympathy for near misses. Common in competitive contexts.
Similar expressions
almost but not quite
near miss
so close
Opposites
success
nailed it
Related idioms
- actions speak louder than words
What people do is more important than what they say
- better safe than sorry
It's better to be careful and prevent problems than to take risks
- so far so good
Things have gone well up to now
- easier said than done
Something is more difficult to do than to talk about
- make a long story short
To summarize or get to the point
- to make matters worse
In addition to existing problems
Use it in a practice answer
Try "close but no cigar" in a CELPIP-style Speaking or Writing task. The AI feedback tells you whether your word choice worked.