as in thriller
something (as a close contest) that induces much suspense as to its outcome
a presidential election that was one of the great nail-biters of all time
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Recent Examples of nail-biter
Factor in the Yuletide games, and ABC/ESPN’s Lakers-Warriors holiday nail-biter beats all comers with an average draw of 7.84 million viewers.
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Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 2 Mar. 2025
The regular-season meeting last month was a nail-biter, with the Big Blue coming out on top, 93-91.
—Timothy Dashiell, Baltimore Sun, 26 Feb. 2025
The decisive win came two seasons after the Eagles had lost to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, and the Chiefs had been the favorites to win the 2025 nail-biter.
—Justin Gest, Newsweek, 10 Feb. 2025
The night’s most prestigious award is always a nail-biter, but this year’s competition promises extra drama with Swift, who holds the AOTY record with four; breakthrough artists Carpenter, Roan and Charli xcx; and industry-evolving musicians Eilish, André 3000 and Jacob Collier in the mix.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nail-biter
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 2 Mar. 2025
The regular-season meeting last month was a nail-biter, with the Big Blue coming out on top, 93-91.
—Timothy Dashiell, Baltimore Sun, 26 Feb. 2025
The decisive win came two seasons after the Eagles had lost to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, and the Chiefs had been the favorites to win the 2025 nail-biter.
—Justin Gest, Newsweek, 10 Feb. 2025
The night’s most prestigious award is always a nail-biter, but this year’s competition promises extra drama with Swift, who holds the AOTY record with four; breakthrough artists Carpenter, Roan and Charli xcx; and industry-evolving musicians Eilish, André 3000 and Jacob Collier in the mix.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 2 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nail-biter
Cite this Entry
“Nail-biter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nail-biter. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.
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