finish

verb fin·ish \ ˈfi-nish \

Updated on: 18 Apr 2018

Definition of finish

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.

—

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

Peabody 12, Haverhill 10 — Sarah Buckley paced the Tanners with five goals and an assist and freshman Olivia Lavalle finished with 10 saves.

— craig larson, BostonGlobe.com, "Jon Bartlett steps down as BC High football coach," 14 Apr. 2018
The Hornets are coming off back to back seasons of finishing with a 36–46 record.

— scooby axson, SI.com, "Steve Clifford Fired As Hornets Coach," 13 Apr. 2018
The hair was then blown dry with Kenra Professional Heat Block 22 Spray and finished with a spritz of the IGK Beach Club Texture Spray.

— wendy sy, Allure, "Prepare to Obsess Over This "Mermaid Melt" Hair," 13 Apr. 2018
Jacobs benefited at times from the attention paid to Moore last season, finishing with 47 receptions for 553 yards and five touchdowns, all career highs.

— don markus, baltimoresun.com, "Out of big brother's shadow, Taivon Jacobs trying to help Maryland football replace DJ Moore," 12 Apr. 2018
The Harlon Hill Award winner became the first quarterback to throw for more than 300 yards in the title game since 2005, finishing his season with 4,999 passing yards.

— william wilkerson, star-telegram, "Win a national title in Texas, get... a rifle?," 12 Apr. 2018
Madsen led the Cougars with three goals and Tallon finished with two.

— randy mcroberts, The Aegis, "Patterson Mill boys make history with lacrosse victory over Fallston," 12 Apr. 2018
Nalls scored three straight goals in the fourth quarter and finished with four, while Michael Doughty followed with two goals and four assists.

— bob hough, Howard County Times, "Glenelg boys lacrosse rolls past Broadneck, 16-3," 11 Apr. 2018
Vosloh walked in a run in the 7th inning to bring her RBI total up to four on the day as Thomas finished with three hits and two RBIs.

— spring hill college athletics, AL.com, "Spring Hill softball storms back to sweep DH at Miles," 11 Apr. 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, from Anglo-French finiss-, stem of finir, from Latin finire, from finis — see ¹fine

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

The Nets lost their season finale Wednesday in Boston, 110-97, but won five of their last eight -- the best finish among any team in the top 10 of the draft.

— matt goul, cleveland.com, "Brooklyn Nets pick watch: Cavs have eighth-best chance in lottery," 12 Apr. 2018
SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick discusses the chaotic finish to the regular season that is about to hit the Western Conference.

— sam amick, USA TODAY, "Rockets' Luc Mbah a Moute expected to miss first round of NBA playoffs," 11 Apr. 2018
SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick discusses the chaotic finish to the regular season that is about to hit the Western Conference.

— gentry estes, The Courier-Journal, "Morning Coffee: Donovan Mitchell responds to Ben Simmons' NBA Rookie of the Year comments," 11 Apr. 2018
The Craftsman is an easy to use slider belt with a bit of flair, thanks to the wood grain finish on the aluminum buckle.

— graham averill, Outside Online, "Why You Should Wear an Adventure Belt," 11 Apr. 2018
In the Eastern Conference, the Tampa Bay Lightning skidded to the finish but got the No.

— helene elliott, latimes.com, "NHL playoffs preview: A look at each series matchup," 10 Apr. 2018
That caused a late-race caution and set us up for a dash to the finish.

— jonathan m. gitlin, Ars Technica, "Formula 1 on ESPN sees massive improvement; IndyCar thrilled in Phoenix," 9 Apr. 2018
Bruce Fenwick’s De Chera was third with Monstaleur, Wildcatter and Imperial Way rounding out the finish.

— maryanna skowronski, The Aegis, "Elkridge-Harford races go on despite un-springlike weather; Ebanour takes featured timber contest," 8 Apr. 2018
High intensity is best for work surfaces; choose from warm or cool color temperature depending on the cabinet and countertop finishes.

— maria frank, Houston Chronicle, "GHBA Remodelers Council: Integrated lighting," 6 Apr. 2018

Origin and Etymology of finish

see 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.

finish

noun

Definition of finish for Students

1 : ¹end 2, conclusion

The race had a close finish.

2 : the final treatment or coating of a surface or the appearance given by such a treatment

The table has a shiny finish.

Learn More about finish

See words that rhyme with finish Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for finish Spanish Central: Translation of finish Nglish: Translation of finish for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of finish for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about finish

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finish

Definition of finish

finisher

Examples of finish in a Sentence

Recent Examples of finish from the Web

Origin and Etymology of finish

finish Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Phrases

Synonym Discussion of finish

finish

Definition of finish

Examples of finish in a Sentence

Recent Examples of finish from the Web

Origin and Etymology of finish

finish Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

Other Alcoholic Beverage Terms

Phrases Related to FINISH

Related Phrases

FINISH Defined for English Language Learners

finish

Definition of finish for English Language Learners

finish

Definition of finish for English Language Learners

FINISH Defined for Kids

finish

Definition of finish for Students

Word Root of finish

finish

Definition of finish for Students

Learn More about finish

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