dead heat

noun

: a tie with no single winner of a race

broadly : tie

Synonyms of dead heat

• tie
• draw

Examples of dead heat in a Sentence

the horses crossed the finish line in a dead heat

Recent Examples on the Web

Polls showed a virtual dead heat, which seemed like bad news for Harris. — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026

The results were particularly surprising as most polls had either SNS ahead or locked in a dead heat. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 27 Oct. 2026

Polls show Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition in a dead heat with his chief rival, the centrist Gadi Eisenkot. — Daniel Brook, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026

Polling suggests that the race is a dead heat, despite the fact that Kansas hasn’t sent a Democrat to the Senate in nearly a century. — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 22 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1796, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dead heat

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete

Kids Definition

dead heat

noun

: a contest in which two or more competitors tie