1
: a venture involving great risk but promising a great reward if successful
also : a venture unlikely to succeed
2
: an entry (as in a horse race) given little chance of winning
3
: a bet in which the chances of winning are slight but the possible winnings great
Phrases
by a long shot
: by a great deal

Examples of long shot in a Sentence

I hope to double my profits, but I know that's a long shot. The horse was a long shot, but we bet on him anyway. She always bets on long shots at the racetrack.
Recent Examples on the Web The long shot bid to unseat board president Nate Miley seems to have come up short. Will McCarthy, The Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2024 Although many experts regard this as a long shot now, there's evidence that humanity is at long last making progress. Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 15 Feb. 2024 President Joe Biden is competing on that ballot along with author Marianne Williamson and various other long shot candidates seeking the state's 36 Democratic delegates. Soo Rin Kim, ABC News, 6 Feb. 2024 There are a few long shots to keep an eye on, including Jalen Brunson. Pat Graham, The Denver Post, 6 Feb. 2024 Pascucci, 38, already faces a long shot campaign to fill the seat vacated by the death of Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Andrew Sheeler, Sacramento Bee, 30 Jan. 2024 His only competition in Nevada’s caucuses is a long shot: Texas businessman and Pastor Ryan Binkley. Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2024 Attempting a reworked, legally defensible, and even remotely comparable version of the 2018 package would, in the end, have to involve shareholders agreeing to Musk being paid billions of dollars for past services, and that looks like a long shot . Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 5 Feb. 2024 Interest rates hold steady Despite rapidly slowing inflation, the Federal Reserve held its key interest rate steady Wednesday and opened the door to rate cuts — but signaled that a March move is probably a long shot. Laura L. Davis, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'long shot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1796, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of long shot was in 1796

Dictionary Entries Near long shot

Cite this Entry

“Long shot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/long%20shot. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

long shot

noun
1
: a great risk that promises a great reward if successful
2
: an entry (as in a horse race) given little chance of winning

More from Merriam-Webster on long shot

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