Origin of Phrases - C
Close but no cigar
Meaning: It refers to a near miss or almost but not quite, winning the prize, contest, or achieving a goal.
Example: That free throw was close but no cigar.
Origin: The phrase, and its variant 'nice try, but no cigar', are of US origin. Carnival games of skill, particularly shooting games, once gave out cigars as a prize. A contestant that did not quite hit the target was close, but did not get a cigar.
It was first recorded in print in the script of the 1935 film version of Annie Oakley: "Close, Colonel, but no cigar!"