not by any stretch

not by any stretch
not by any stretch (of the imagination) even if you try, it is still difficult to accept.

She was never a great player, not by any stretch of the imagination.

He's nice-looking but by no stretch of the imagination could you describe him as handsome.

Our survey was purely random and by no stretch scientific.

Usage notes: sometimes used in the form by any stretch (of the imagination) - even possibly:

It's the only plan that could, by any stretch, be relied upon to work.

It's only a slight stretch of the imagination to call that scissors a weapon.


New idioms dictionary. 2014.

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  • not by any stretch of the imagination — not by any/by no/stretch of the imagination phrase used for saying that you think something cannot be true or possible no matter how hard you try to imagine it It’s not a great work of cinema by any stretch of the imagination. Thesaurus: ways of… …   Useful english dictionary

  • not by any stretch of the imagination — not by any stretch (of the imagination) even if you try, it is still difficult to accept. She was never a great player, not by any stretch of the imagination. He s nice looking but by no stretch of the imagination could you describe him as… …   New idioms dictionary

  • not by any stretch of the imagination — (not) by any stretch of the imagination if you say that by no stretch of the imagination can you describe something or someone in a particular way, you mean that this way of describing them is certainly not correct. She was never a great player,… …   New idioms dictionary

  • not by any stretch of the imagination — not adding to the story, not stretching it    Gigi wasn t his only girl, not by any stretch of the imagination …   English idioms

  • by any stretch of the imagination — (not) by any stretch of the imagination if you say that by no stretch of the imagination can you describe something or someone in a particular way, you mean that this way of describing them is certainly not correct. She was never a great player,… …   New idioms dictionary

  • by any stretch... — See not by any stretch of the imagination …   English idioms

  • stretch — 1 verb 1 MAKE STH BIGGER/LOOSER a) (I, T) to make something bigger or looser by pulling it, or to become bigger or looser as a result of being pulled: My big, blue sweater has stretched completely out of shape. b) (intransitive not in… …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • stretch*/*/ — [stretʃ] verb I 1) [I/T] if you stretch something, or if it stretches, it becomes longer or wider when you pull it Can you stretch the material a little?[/ex] My jumper stretched the first time I washed it.[/ex] 2) [T] to pull something so that… …   Dictionary for writing and speaking English

  • stretch — stretch1 W3S3 [stretʃ] v ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(make something bigger/looser)¦ 2¦(body)¦ 3¦(reach)¦ 4¦(make something tight)¦ 5¦(time/series)¦ 6¦(in space)¦ 7 stretch your legs 8 stretch (somebody s) patience/credulity 9¦(rule/limit)¦ …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • stretch — [[t]stre̱tʃ[/t]] ♦♦♦ stretches, stretching, stretched 1) VERB: no cont Something that stretches over an area or distance covers or exists in the whole of that area or distance. [V prep/adv] The procession stretched for several miles... [V… …   English dictionary

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