semifinal

1 of 2

adjective

semi·​fi·​nal ˌse-mē-ˈfī-nᵊl How to pronounce semifinal (audio)
ˌse-ˌmī-,
-mi-
1
: being next to the last in an elimination tournament
2
: of or participating in a semifinal

semifinal

2 of 2

noun

semi·​fi·​nal ˈse-mē-ˌfī-nᵊl How to pronounce semifinal (audio)
ˈse-ˌmī-,
-mi-
1
: a semifinal match
2
: a semifinal round
semifinalist
ˌse-mē-ˈfī-nᵊl-ist How to pronounce semifinal (audio)
ˌse-ˌmī-
-mi-
noun

Examples of semifinal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The semifinal winners meet in the final at 5:15 p.m. Sunday at Snapdragon. Damian Calhoun, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Mar. 2024 Mexico, a 3-2 winner over Paraguay in Sunday’s other quarterfinal, will play Brazil in its semifinal Wednesday. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024 Jones tallied a game-high 28 points -- draining 8 three-pointers -- in a 50-38 semifinal win over Galveston O’Connell. Mike Waters, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Feb. 2024 Santa Teresa, in its first season under veteran South Bay coach Patrick Judge, is hoping to receive one of the three NorCal bids the CCS has for semifinal teams that don’t advance to a final. Darren Sabedra, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024 Jurgen Klinsmann has been fired as head coach of the South Korean national team after an Asian Cup semifinal exit and reports of infighting among star players, ending a turbulent 12 months for the German coach. John Duerden, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2024 Here's who's playing in Arizona 3A, 2A high school basketball semifinal playoffs Super Bowl 58 prediction:ESPN matchup predictor's 49ers-Chiefs pick, win probabilities Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495. Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 11 Feb. 2024 Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic’s Tigres del Licey won the Caribbean Series last year and has won the tournament 12 times overall but barely snuck into the semifinal field after going 3-3 during round robin play. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 8 Feb. 2024 Jael Martin, Carlsbad High School’s 6-foot-9 Pepperdine signee, rolled an ankle in PE class Thursday morning and was wearing a walking boot — and out of the lineup — for Wednesday’s CIF San Diego Section Open Division semifinal game against La Jolla Country Day. John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Feb. 2024
Noun
After finishing in third place in the league standings and losing in the semifinals of the City Section Open Division playoffs, the Chancellors reeled off four straight wins and are now headed to the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento to take on Monterey (24-6) Saturday at noon. Steve Galluzzo, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The Anteaters will face an opponent to be determined in a semifinal on Friday, March 15 at 6 p.m. PT. Dan Arritt, Orange County Register, 5 Mar. 2024 Zaire King, Ygnacio Valley basketball: King hit a game-winner from the logo to help Ygnacio Valley beat Carmel 77-74 and advance to the NorCal semifinals where the Wolves eventually fell to No. 1 seed Santa Cruz. Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2024 The quarterfinals are Saturday and Sunday, the semifinals Monday, March 11 and the tourney championship games Tuesday, March 12. Kansas City Star, 3 Mar. 2024 Duncanville takes overtime to subdue Summer Creek The Duncanville girls basketball team led for all but 16 seconds of its Class 6A state semifinal with Houston Summer Creek, but the Panthers were still on the brink of elimination. Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Mar. 2024 The winner will advance to the semifinals along with eight other contestants and remain in the running for the tournament’s $250,000 grand prize. Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024 The Wildcats withstood an early barrage and went into the final period even, but Fond du Lac Springs punched home the eventual game-winner with just under seven minutes remaining for a 2-1 victory in the Division 2 semifinals of the Wisconsin boys hockey state tournament Thursday afternoon. Jim Hoehn, Twin Cities, 29 Feb. 2024 Sweden ended up advancing on penalty kicks, sending the U.S. home short of the semifinals for the first time in tournament history. Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'semifinal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1884, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1895, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of semifinal was in 1884

Dictionary Entries Near semifinal

Cite this Entry

“Semifinal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semifinal. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

semifinal

1 of 2 adjective
semi·​fi·​nal ˌsem-i-ˈfīn-ᵊl How to pronounce semifinal (audio)
1
: coming before the final round in a tournament
2
: of or taking part in a semifinal

semifinal

2 of 2 noun
semi·​fi·​nal ˈsem-i-ˌfīn-ᵊl How to pronounce semifinal (audio)
: a semifinal match or game
semifinalist noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!