final

1 of 2

adjective

fi·​nal ˈfī-nᵊl 

1

a

: not to be altered or undone

all sales are final

b

: of or relating to a concluding court action or proceeding

final decree

2

: coming at the end : being the last in a series, process, or progress

the final chapter

final exams

3

: of or relating to the ultimate purpose or result of a process

our final goal

the final product

final

2 of 2

noun

: something that is final: such as

a

: a deciding match, game, heat, or trial

—usually used in plural

b

: the last examination in a course

—often used in plural

Synonyms

Adjective

• bottommost
• closing
• concluding
• hindmost
• lag
• last
• latest
• latter
• rearmost
• terminal
• terminating
• ultimate

Choose the Right Synonym for final

last, final, terminal, ultimate mean following all others (as in time, order, or importance).

last applies to something that comes at the end of a series but does not always imply that the series is completed or stopped.

last page of a book

last news we had of him

final applies to that which definitely closes a series, process, or progress.

final day of school

terminal may indicate a limit of extension, growth, or development.

terminal phase of a disease

ultimate implies the last degree or stage of a long process beyond which further progress or change is impossible.

the ultimate collapse of the system

Examples of final in a Sentence

Adjective

the final act of the play

They won their final four games.

in the final minutes of the game

Our last stop was Bangkok, but our final destination is Tokyo.

The plans are undergoing final review.

What was the final score?

The final product was not what we had expected.

Noun

He failed his history finals.

He failed his history final.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Some argued that the performance did not capture the struggle of wartime reality while others feared that Ukraine, for the first time in the history of Europe’s biggest song contest, might not qualify for the final. —Katya Soldak, Forbes.com, 17 May 2025

The big didn’t even log a single second in the final two periods. —Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 17 May 2025

Noun

On college campuses, spring is often a sunny time: finals are finished, and commencement festivities begin. —Robert Costa, CBS News, 4 May 2025

And his team responded with a 62-20 regular season, a march through the Western Conference playoffs and a dismantling of the Heat in a five-game rematch in the finals. —David Aldridge, New York Times, 3 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, "pertaining to an end or conclusion, effecting a close, ultimate, conclusive," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin fīnālis "last, at the end, ultimate," going back to Latin, "of boundaries," from fīnis "boundary, limit, terminal point, ending" (of uncertain origin) + -ālis -al entry 1

Note: According to an older hypothesis, fīnis goes back to *fig-sn-is, a derivative from the base of fīgere "to drive in, insert, fasten" (see fix entry 1), assuming that the word originally referred to some sort of boundary marker fixed to a tree or driven into the ground. A more recent suggestion sees fīnis going back to *bhiH-n-i, a derivative of an Indo-European verbal base *b^hei̯H- "strike, break," seen also in an o-grade derivative *b^hoi̯H-n-o-, whence Germanic *baina- "bone" and "straight" (in Old Norse beinn "straight"); (see bone entry 1); in this case fīnis would have referred originally to an upright branch or stake used to mark boundaries. Both hypotheses are in the end speculative, as the semantic prehistory of fīnis in Latin is unknown.

Noun

derivative of final entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1609, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing final

• final boss
• final curtain
• final draft
• final/last resting place
• final score
• final solution
• in the final/last analysis
• make the final/supreme/ultimate sacrifice
• the final/last straw
• the last/final word

Rhymes for final

• pinal
• spinal
• vinyl
• affinal
• anginal
• synclinal
• vaginal
• anticlinal
• entorhinal
• isoclinal
• polyvinyl
• transvaginal

Kids Definition

final

1 of 2 adjective

fi·​nal ˈfīn-ᵊl 

1

: not to be changed or undone

my final offer

2

: relating to or occurring at the end or conclusion : ultimate

the final act of the play

finally

ˈfīn-ᵊl-ē 

-lē

adverb

final

2 of 2 noun

: something final: as

a

: the last match or game of a tournament

—usually used in plural

b

: the last examination in a course

—often used in plural

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English final "perfect, final, not to be changed," from early French final (same meaning), from Latin finalis "final, relating to the end" — related to define, finish, infinity

Legal Definition

final

adjective

fi·​nal

1

: ending a court action or proceeding leaving nothing further to be determined by the court or to be done except execution of the judgment but not precluding appeal

—used of an order, decision, judgment, decree, determination, or sentence see also finality, final judgment rule compare interlocutory

2

: being a decision that precludes the right to appeal or to continue a case in any other court upon the merits: as

a

: being a decision for which availability of appeal has been exhausted and concerning which a writ of certiorari has been denied or the time to petition for certiorari has expired

b

: being a decision of the Supreme Court of the U.S. that terminates the litigation between parties on the merits and leaves nothing for the lower court to do in case of an affirmance except to execute the judgment

3

: being the last in a series, process, or progress

a final payment