last chance saloon

last chance sa·loon
UK/ˌlɑːs(t)tʃɑːns səˈluːn/UK/ˌlæs(t)tʃæns-/US/ˌlæs(t)ˌtʃæns səˈlun/US/ˈlæs(t)-/

noun

A saloon located at the end of a road or the outskirts of a town.

“Unless we find a million pounds by Monday, the company will go bust. We really are in the last chance saloon.”

First used late 19th c.
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Meanings

noun
  1. USWesternhistoricalA saloon located at the end of a road or the outskirts of a town.First known use late 19th c.
  2. UKfigurativelyA place that one is said to inhabit when facing an imminent disaster with diminishing or limited remaining opportunities to avoid it; a last chance to take action.First known use mid 20th c.

    Unless we find a million pounds by Monday, the company will go bust. We really are in the last chance saloon.

Origin

Said to be from the name of a former type of bar or saloon in the United States in the 19th century that offered customers the final opportunity to drink alcohol before passing into an area where alcohol was prohibited or scarce.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with last chance saloon

junesoonmooncartoonafternoontunenoontribuneimmuneballoonCameroonspoonsaloonlagoontoontycoondunenuntyphoonboonmonsoonplatooncocoonrune
All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

last chance saloon. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/last%20chance%20saloon

MLA

“last chance saloon.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/last%20chance%20saloon. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “last chance saloon,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/last%20chance%20saloon.

Source: last chance saloon on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.