The idiom "by the skin of one’s teeth" means to barely succeed in doing something or to narrowly avoid a failure or disaster. It is often used to describe a situation where someone has just managed to achieve something, but only just, and it was a very close call.
For example, if someone says "I passed my driving test by the skin of my teeth," it means that they only just managed to pass the test, and it was a very close call. Similarly, if someone says "I missed my flight by the skin of my teeth," it means that they only just missed the flight, and it was a very close call.
The phrase "by the skin of one’s teeth" comes from the Bible, specifically from the Book of Job, where Job says "My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth." This means that Job had narrowly escaped death, and the phrase has since come to mean narrowly escaping a difficult situation.
In summary, "by the skin of one’s teeth" means to barely succeed or narrowly avoid a failure or disaster. It is a useful phrase to describe a close call or a situation where success was achieved only just.
• I almost missed the bus this morning, but I made it by the skin of my teeth.
• Despite facing numerous obstacles, the climbers managed to reach the summit of the mountain by the skin of their teeth.
• The team won the match by the skin of their teeth, scoring the winning goal in the last minute.
• I was running late for my English exam, but I managed to arrive on time by the skin of my teeth.
• The company narrowly avoided bankruptcy by the skin of their teeth, thanks to a last-minute investment.
• The detective solved the case by the skin of his teeth, uncovering crucial evidence at the very last moment.