Meaning: at the last possible moment (definition).

Example: They averted a strike reaching an agreement at the 11th hour. (Examples.)

Origins: The Bible – the last hour of sunlight before darkness sets in at the 11th hour. (Sources.)


Rewrites: a quarter to too late at the moment of last resort with time only to utter the final word with the clock showing just shy of “too late” between 1 and 0 in the final countdown

Discussion: I struggled to find a closer revision of the actual words “the 11th hour” but it was a toughie. What ideas do you have?