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runner-up finish

runner-up finish

1 3.5
Coming second in a competition or race
  • noun
  • /ˈrʌnər ʌp ˈfɪnɪʃ/
translation icon : segundo lugar
  • The top 25 on the money list after this week earn PGA Tour cards, and with a $1 million purse, even a runner-up finish should be enough to get into the top 25.
  • runner-up finish in the NCAA
  • runner-up finishes in majors
  • consecutive runner-up finishes

Examples

  • The team celebrated their runner-up finish after a thrilling final match that went into overtime.

  • And in 2003, he managed to win another $532,490 as a runner-up finish.

    Blog text (10)
  • Bruce Weber's failure to establish Illinois as a perennial contender for the top spot in the conference after a national runner-up finish in 2005 was the worst kind of wasted opportunity.

    Blog text (5)
  • After a strong performance throughout the season, she secured a runner-up finish in the championship race.

  • His consistent training paid off with a runner-up finish in the national competition.

Synonyms

silver medal
vsrunner-up finish
15 1.1

A metal object, usually silver, given to the person who comes second in a competition

is the achievement of finishing in second place rather than the physical prize
second-place finish
vsrunner-up finish
4 2.2

A result when someone comes second in a competition

is the same result expressed with different wording

How Successful

victory
1.0
runner-up finish
1 3.5

Surface Forms

Morphology

runner-up + finish

The noun phrase simply combines 'runner-up' (someone who places second) with 'finish' (the act or position at the end of a contest), so the meaning 'an achievement of second place' is directly derivable from the parts. There is no idiomatic or metaphorical shift here, making the composition straightforward and transparent for learners who know the constituent words.

Etymology

Runner-up finish comes from races: the runner-up is the runner who comes just behind the winner and finish is the end of the race. So a runner-up finish means ending in 'second place'.