Wrestling's partial pin
A near-fall is a wrestling term for a position where a competitor has an opponent's shoulders within inches of the mat without completing a pin.
Officials award points—typically two or three depending on duration—for holding this position: He scored a near-fall in the second period.
Outside wrestling, near-fall occasionally describes any close call or almost-loss of control.
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Wrestling's partial pin
A near-fall is a wrestling term for a position where a competitor has an opponent's shoulders within inches of the mat without completing a pin.
Officials award points—typically two or three depending on duration—for holding this position: He scored a near-fall in the second period.
Outside wrestling, near-fall occasionally describes any close call or almost-loss of control.
1. wrestling — takedown, Forced grounding maneuver; escape (Flight from captivity); reversal (Complete change of direction); pin (Pointed metal fastener); exposure · referee · mat · control · tilt · gut wrench · cradle · half nelson · shoulders · scramble
2. climbing — slip, Minor error or misstep; grip (Secure manual hold); hold (Maintain in grasp); ledge (Projecting horizontal surface); recovery · balance · handhold · foothold · rockface · belay · catch · scramble · traverse · overhang
wrestling outcome completenessnear-fall ≠ pin Pointed metal fastener; fall · pinfall · escape · submission · reversal
point value/scoring magnitudenear-fall ≠ takedown Forced grounding maneuver; escape · penalty point · no score
near, fall, nearer, nearest, nearly, nearness, falls, fell, fallen
Word data: Linguabase (CC0) · www.idea.org/words/near-fall