How to Say ‘It was almost a goal.’ in Japanese
あと少しでゴールだった。
ato sukoshi de gooru datsu ta
[ah-toh soo-koh-shee deh goh-roo daht ta]
💬 Usage Tip: A very natural phrase for a close call. Literally, 'With just a little more, it was a goal.' Japanese often expresses 'almost' this way.
🇯🇵 In Japan: This kind of phrase is common when watching highlight replays too, where fans relive the drama and say how near it was.
Phrase Breakdown
あと少しで
ato sukoshi de
just a little more and; almost; if only a little more
Shows that something was very close to happening.
あと少しで終わる。
It will be over in just a little more time.
Words in this phrase
あと
ato
[ah-toh]
just a little more; almost
Shows that the play was extremely close to becoming a goal.
あと少しでゴールだった。
It was almost a goal.
少し
sukoshi
[soo-koh-shee]
a little; a bit
Adds the idea that only a tiny difference remained.
ほんの少しで入ったのに、あと少しでゴールだった。
It almost went in; it was just a tiny bit away from being a goal.
で
de
[deh]
with; by; at
Part of the expression あと少しで, which means 'almost'.
あと少しで決まった。
It was almost decided.
ゴール
gooru
[goh-roo]
goal
A soccer goal, either the score itself or the ball going into the net.
あと少しでゴールだった。
It was almost a goal.
だった
datsu ta
was; were
Past tense of だ, used to state that something was the case.
いい試合だった。
It was a good game.
Words in this phrase
だっ
datsu
[daht]
was
Says that the situation amounted to 'it was almost a goal'.
あれはもうゴールだったと思った。
I thought that was basically already a goal.
た
ta
[ta]
past tense marker
Completes the past expression 'was'.
最後のプレーはあと少しでゴールだった。
The last play was almost a goal.
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