fall short of success for lack of one final effort; fail at the last step
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesidiom
to fall short of success for lack of one final effort; to fail to complete a task when just one step short of completion; to spoil the ship for a ha'porth of tar
formalDerived from the pseudo-archaic text 'Book of Documents' (《尚书•旅獒》): '为山九仞，功亏一篑' (building a nine-ren mountain, falling short by one basket). Literally refers to stopping one basket of earth short of completing a mountain; figuratively expresses regret that a major undertaking fails due to the lack of one final small effort. Often used to encourage completing a task or to lament a tragic near-miss.
We absolutely must not fall short of success for lack of one final effort; we must persist through the final stage.
So much money has already been invested in this project; stopping now would be falling short of success for lack of one final effort.
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The climbing team retreated when they were only one hundred meters from the summit—truly falling short of success for lack of one final effort.
You must persist until the very end; do not fall short of success for lack of one final effort.