用a long shot表达“成功的希望很渺茫”

a long shot 的字面意思是“长球”。我们也可以用这个表达来形容某事，意思就是实现此事的机会不大。

• I‘m looking for a first edition of Alice in Wonderland for my mother‘s birthday. I know it‘s a long shot, but do you have one in stock?
• My favourite football team is in the cup final at the weekend. I think we could win, but it’s a long shot.
• We could ask the phone company to replace your broken smartphone for free. It‘s a long shot, but it‘s worth trying.

值得注意的是，另一个短语 a shot in the dark 的意思是“毫无根据的胡乱猜测”。

• A: How old do you think I am?
• B: I‘ll take a shot in the dark and say 40.