finish

verb fin·ish \ ˈfi-nish \

|Updated on: 25 Jun 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: finish in a Sentence

Definition of finish

finished; finishing; finishes

intransitive verb

1 a : to come to an end : terminate

The meeting finished at noon.

b : end 1b

2 a : to come to the end of a course, task, or undertaking

I shall finish with a Chopin nocturne
—Lillian Hellman

b : to end relations —used with with

decided to finish with him for good

3 : to end a competition in a specified manner or position

finished third in the race

transitive verb

1 a : to bring to an end : terminate

finished the speech and sat down

b : to use or dispose of entirely

her sandwich finished the loaf

2 a : to bring to completion or issue

hope to finish their new home before winter

b : to provide with a finish; especially : to put a final coat or surface on

finish a table with varnish

3 a : to defeat or ruin utterly and finally

the scandal finished his career

b : to bring about the death of —usually used with off

The gladiator finished off his opponent.

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finisher

noun

See finish defined for English-language learners

See finish defined for kids

Examples of finish in a Sentence

You can't watch TV until you finish your homework.
He started his homework two hours ago and he still hasn't finished.
They hope to finish their new home by winter.
They're building a new home and they hope to finish by winter.
The chairman finished the meeting at noon.
The meeting finished on a positive note.

Recent Examples of finish from the Web

On Thursday, Sports Illustrated finished unveiling its top 100 college football players for the 2018 season.

— jordan mcpherson, miamiherald, "Sports Illustrated named its top 100 college football players. These Canes made the cut," 22 June 2018
At 57, Meghan Laws has finished Western States 11 times—including ten top-ten finishes.

— julie brown, Outside Online, "The Best Running Socks, According to Ultramarathoners," 22 June 2018
Inside the black Bentsen Tower, Hacker has finished processing the migrants.

— trevor hughes, USA TODAY, "Texas border chaos: Courts, families, government collide in zero-tolerance debacle," 22 June 2018
Last year, South Korea finished review for 6,015 refugee claims, rejecting all but 91 of them, according to South Korea’s Justice Ministry.

— brian murphy, Washington Post, "How hundreds of Yemenis fleeing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis ended up on a resort island in South Korea," 22 June 2018
Crisp handcut French fries finished off the dish — for an extra $4.

— lauren delgado, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Bites & Bubbles serves up a romantic date night in Mills 50," 22 June 2018
Green had just finished the 14th hole at the 77 U.S. Open, at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, when tournament officials told him that a woman had called to say that three of her friends were going to shoot him at the 15th hole.

— kansascity, "Journalists, sports figures and an endearing gorilla leave us," 22 June 2018
After falling a game shy of reaching the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals, the Wizards finished 43-39, entered the playoffs as the eighth seed and lost in the first round to Toronto in six games.

— benjamin standig, baltimoresun.com, "Wizards select Oregon swingman Troy Brown Jr. with 15th overall pick in NBA draft," 21 June 2018
Zach Johnson finished the front nine in the morning at the at 2-under, highlighted by birdies on the fourth and fifth holes.

— shawn mcfarland, courant.com, "Jordan Spieth, Zach Johnson Lead Travelers Championship After Round One," 21 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'finish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of finish

Middle English finisshen, borrowed from Anglo-French finiss-, stem of finir, going back to Latlin fīnīre "to mark out the boundaries, limit, put an end to, bring to a close," derivative of fīnis "boundary, limit, ending" — more at ¹final

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

See Words from the same year

finish Synonyms

Phrases

bite the dust;

Synonym Discussion of finish

close, end, conclude, finish, complete, terminate mean to bring or come to a stopping point or limit. close usually implies that something has been in some way open as well as unfinished.

- close a debate

end conveys a strong sense of finality.

- ended his life

conclude may imply a formal closing (as of a meeting).

- the service concluded with a blessing

finish may stress completion of a final step in a process.

- after it is painted, the house will be finished

complete implies the removal of all deficiencies or a successful finishing of what has been undertaken.

- the resolving of this last issue completes the agreement

terminate implies the setting of a limit in time or space.

- your employment terminates after three months

finish

noun

Definition of finish

1 : something that completes or perfects: such as

a : the fine or decorative work required for a building or one of its parts

b : a finishing material used in painting

c : the final treatment or coating of a surface

d : the taste in the mouth after swallowing a beverage (such as wine)

2 a : final stage : end

b : the cause of one's ruin

3 : the result or product of a finishing process

a glossy finish

4 : the quality or state of being perfected

See finish defined for English-language learners

Examples of finish in a Sentence

a suspense film with a perfect surprise finish
The table had a shiny finish.
I need to put one more coat of finish on the chair.

Recent Examples of finish from the Web

Speaking of positive finishes, Pennsbury High graduate Jackie Rogowicz, who will enter her senior year at Penn State in the fall, birdied three of her last four holes for a 72 and finished at 155 in her first LPGA experience.

— joe juliano, Philly.com, "France native Celin Herbin, a former biochemical engineer, vies for ShopRite LPGA title contender," 9 June 2018
This team finishes with 25 wins and a second-place finish in District 12-6A. The postseason run trumped all though, with wins over Rockwall, Garland Sachse, 12-6A champion Montgomery, Klein and Round Rock.

— adam coleman, Houston Chronicle, "The Woodlands falls short of title game with loss to Southlake Carroll," 8 June 2018
Perhaps the key to Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier is the finish: fairly light and refreshing, with even a bit of crispness that keeps such a layered and interesting beer eminently drinkable.

— josh noel, chicagotribune.com, "Beer of the Month: A classic hefeweizen straight out of Germany," 7 June 2018
With its icy blue satin finish, plunging neckline, and giant bow, the ensemble offered a fashion-forward twist on a traditional shirtdress via some very Rihanna touches, including an off-the-shoulder neckline and asymmetrical hem.

— janelle okwodu, Vogue, "Rihanna Goes Pastel Princess on the Streets of New York," 7 June 2018
Plus, there are a variety of finishes, from satin to shimmer to metallic and beyond, to give you yet another chance for experimentation.

— deanna pai, Glamour, "Urban Decay's Born to Run Palette Is as Perfect for Summer as It Gets," 6 June 2018
Following the podium finish, Power’s championship lead over longtime rival Dixon is five points.

— jim ayello, Indianapolis Star, "Insider: After so many close calls, Ryan Hunter-Reay savors that winning feeling," 3 June 2018
One other Northwest Indiana athlete had a top-two finish: Lowell senior Alec Fleming, who was runner-up in the 3,200 at 9:13.92.

— dave melton, Post-Tribune, "Top two: Crown Point long jumper Nicholas Ryan and Chesterton sprinter Braden Corzan win state titles," 3 June 2018
In nine official starts in his latest comeback, Woods has two top-five finishes, and has gotten better as the tournaments have unfolded.

— karen crouse, New York Times, "Tiger Woods Didn’t Win Again. But He Will.," 3 June 2018

Origin and Etymology of finish

derivative of ¹finish

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1779

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

finish Synonyms

Synonyms

capper, close, closing, conclusion, consummation, end, endgame, ending, finale, finis, grand finale, home stretch, mop-up, windup, wrap-up;

Antonyms

baseline, beginning, dawn, day one, nascence, nascency, opening, start;

Near Antonyms

foreword, introduction, overture, preamble, preface, prelude, prologue (also prolog);

aftermath, anticlimax, coda, epilogue (also epilog), postscript;

shank, tag end, tail end;

Other Alcoholic Beverage Terms

gimlet, mull, sake, setup, sommelier, syllabub, vintner, wassail

FINISH Defined for English Language Learners

finish

verb

Definition of finish for English Language Learners

: to reach the end of (something) : to stop doing (something) because it is completed
: to be done with building or creating (something)
: to cause something to end or stop : to reach the end of something

finish

noun

Definition of finish for English Language Learners

: the last part of something
: the final coating on a surface or the appearance produced by such a coating

FINISH Defined for Kids

finish

verb fin·ish \ ˈfi-nish \

Definition of finish for Students

finished; finishing

1 : to bring or come to an end : complete

2 : to use up completely

I finished the pie.

3 : to end a competition in a certain position

I finished third in the race.

4 : to put a final coat or surface on

He finished the wood table with varnish.

Word Root of finish

The Latin word finis, meaning “end” or “boundary,” gives us the root fin. Words from the Latin finis have something to do with ends or limits. Something final, such as the last chapter in a book, is the ending one. To confine is to put limits or boundaries around something. To finish something is to come to its end. Something finite has limits and happens only for a certain amount of time or in a certain space before it ends.