"Not quite!," and what can be said about a letter string in the answer to each starred clue (5,3,2,5)
I believe the answer is:
close but no cigar
(Other definitions for close but no cigar that I've seen before include "Very nearly" , "not good enough for Havana?" , "It's not quite good enough" .)
I've seen this clue in the LA Times.
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