last resort
When nothing works
A last resort is the final option when all others have failed or been exhausted: Surgery should be a last resort.
The phrase implies reluctance—you turn to a last resort only because nothing else worked.
As a last resort, we called the police.
A lender of last resort is a central bank that provides emergency funds when no other source will.
- fallbackAlternative if primary fails
- desperationUtter loss of hope
- trump cardDecisive winning resource
- backupStored duplicate for recovery
- ace in the holeSecret decisive advantage
break glass · Hail Mary · expedient · back against the wall · do-or-die · eleventh hour · option · nuclear option · contingency plan · ultimate · final · ultimate option · drastic · lifeline · cornered · worst case scenario · bottom of the barrel · refuge
- No Choiceno choice, no alternative, only option, take-it-or-leave-it, locked in
- strategystrategy, grand strategy, tactics, tactic, tactical
- decisionschoice, make a decision, choices, yes, no
- desperate measuresdesperate plea, desperation move, final stand, grasp at straws, hail mary
- crunch timecrunch time, do or die, do-or-die, now or never, make or break
- War Ethicsjust war, rules of war, rules of engagement, Geneva Conventions, Geneva Convention
last resortfirst choice
Most preferred option
first option · top choice · starting point · plan A · go-to
last, late, lasting, latest, lately, resource, resort, lasts, latter