How to Use nail-biter in a Sentence

nail-biter

noun
Definition of nail-biternext
Synonyms for nail-biternext
  • The Texans lost a nail-biter against the Packers 24-22.
    — Shafaq Patel, Axios, 21 Oct. 2024
  • What was once a three-games-to-one rout has become a three-games-to-two nail-biter.
    — Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2023
  • Once Dublin heated up, the game turned into a nail-biter.
    — Darren Sabedra, The Mercury News, 20 Jan. 2024
  • The Rays pulled out a tight one after dropping 1-0 and 2-1 nail-biters, and dodged their first sweep of the season.
    — Andrew Seligman, BostonGlobe.com, 31 May 2023
  • What began as a blowout — KU led by 22 in the second half — turned into a nail-biter late.
    — Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
  • That the game turned into a nail-biter in the final five minutes shouldn’t have come as a surprise.
    — Mike Cook, Twin Cities, 15 Jan. 2024
  • At a time when the GOP’s statewide electoral prospects in California were not quite so dim, the race was a nail-biter.
    — Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Washington Post, 22 July 2024
  • The game that ended 71-69 was a nail-biter with a one-point margin until the final seconds.
    — Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 6 Apr. 2024
  • And, of course, the United States is headed for another nail-biter of an election in 2024.
    — TIME, 18 Mar. 2024
  • His nerves about reaching the falsetto at the end made watching his performance a nail-biter.
    — Kimi Robinson, USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024
  • The Lancers won their first two games before dropping a pair of nail-biters on Friday and Saturday.
    — The Arizona Republic, 2 Jan. 2024
  • Even the two teams' closest matchups during this tournament haven't been true nail-biters.
    — NBC News, 9 Apr. 2024
  • Though successful, Odysseus' landing last week was a nail-biter.
    — Denise Chow, NBC News, 27 Feb. 2024
  • Marcus beat Plano 6-5, but gave up three runs in the top of the seventh inning to turn what looked like a comfortable win into a nail-biter.
    — Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 19 Apr. 2023
  • For millions of Americans, spring weather is making this eclipse a nail-biter: Will clouds spoil their view?
    — Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 8 Apr. 2024
  • How did Trump manage to hold on and maintain a comfortable margin in a state that has long been an Election Night nail-biter?
    — Ron Elving, NPR, 23 Mar. 2024
  • Week one was full of nail-biters, including an overtime outing.
    — oregonlive, 4 Sep. 2023
  • The Chiefs’ nail-biter win overall outpaced other playoff games that took place last weekend.
    — Alli Rosenbloom, CNN, 27 Jan. 2024
  • Biden won Nevada in 2020 in a nail-biter, and the state is expected to once again be a critical battleground in this year’s election.
    — Claudia Grisales, NPR, 7 June 2024
  • November’s election looks to be a nail-biter at all levels, but not all close races are created equal.
    — Henry Olsen, National Review, 30 June 2024
  • Andrade closed the gap between herself and Biles in the team final, setting the stage for a nail-biter ahead of Thursday's competition.
    — Kaetlyn Liddy, NBC News, 1 Aug. 2024
  • Of course, this year’s Golden Globes, the first under new ownership, has been a bit of a nail-biter on several fronts — starting, of course, with the org’s ownership change.
    — Michael Schneider, Variety, 11 Dec. 2023
  • Remember, both these teams played in nail-biters at the sectional-final level.
    — Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 17 Mar. 2023
  • Despite only having one working leg, Derrick hopped his way into a nail-biter of a result.
    — Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 10 Oct. 2024
  • Guy Ritchie, though, does a much more stimulating job with this nail-biter about a secret wartime operation.
    — Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2024
  • The unique nail-biter takes place in the shadows of L.A.’s homeless camps, run-down motels and dark alleys, following women who have turned — for various reasons — to a life of crime.
    — Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2024
  • Kansas City won its fourth consecutive game to start the season in a fourth consecutive nail-biter.
    — NBC News, 30 Sep. 2024
  • The nail-biter of a game saw Lions quarterback Jared Goff dominate the gridiron, completing 22 of 27 pass attempts while throwing for one touchdown.
    — Justin Klawans, The Week Us, theweek, 15 Jan. 2024
  • The 2024 election also appears to be a nail-biter where only a handful of votes in an important battleground state could determine the winner.
    — Kyler Alvord, People.com, 2 Oct. 2024
  • That victory, behind two first-half goals from Hayley Raso, righted a ship that appeared to be sinking after a nail-biter with Ireland and a loss to Nigeria.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2023

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

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