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second best
noun
- the next to the best in performance, achievement, craftsmanship, etc.
second-best
adjective
- next to the best
- come off second best informal.to be defeated in competition
noun
- an inferior alternative
Other Word Forms
- oԻ- adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of second best1
Idioms and Phrases
Also, second class . Next after the first in rank or quality, inferior to the best, as in We aren't satisfied with being second best in sales , or This hotel is obviously second class . The first term dates from the first half of the 1400s, the variant from about 1800. Also see come off , def. 2; second class .Example Sentences
I wanted to say, come to the show and have it be the second best night.
They were a distant second best in the first leg and, while their fans did their part in the return with plenty of noise at the Bernabeu, the players failed to do theirs.
The Cavaliers have the best record in the NBA, the Thunder the second best and the Grizzlies are fourth in the Western Conference.
It said this was backed up by recent NHS performance figures, which showed the health board in the second best position over "lost hours" in December, as well as delays over one hour.
England are no longer streets ahead against the rest and secure in their status as the second best team in the world.
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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