Also means
come close to, narrowly avoid
Usage Note
Frôler implies a very light, barely-there contact — frôler quelqu'un is to brush past someone. Figuratively, frôler la mort means 'to come close to death' and frôler la catastrophe means 'to narrowly avoid disaster' — both are very common in journalistic French. The noun frôlement (m) means a light brush or touch.
Examples
"La balle a frôlé son oreille sans le toucher."
Natural Translation
The bullet grazed his ear without hitting him.
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