the last/final word

noun

1

: the final thing said in an argument or a discussion

Your mother's decision is the final word on the matter.

Why do you always have to have the last word?

2

: the power to make a final decision

The judge will have the last word on the divorce agreement.

3

informal : the most modern or best one of its kind

This is the last word in wireless phones.

The van's design is the last word in safety.

Examples of the last/final word in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Although Selena insisted that he be let back in, her dad had the final word. —Makena Gera, Peoplemag, 16 Feb. 2024

Because the Supreme Court issues fewer than a hundred decisions a year, the circuit courts deliver the final word in tens of thousands of federal cases. —Jeffrey Toobin, The New York Review of Books, 15 Feb. 2024

And as more results came in, showing Phillips losing his own home state of Minnesota in a landslide, Phillips appeared determined to have the final word as his relevance on the national scene continued to fade. —Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 6 Mar. 2024

In other words, al-Houthi will be a kind of counterpart to the supreme leader in Iran, who has the final word on all affairs of state. —Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2024

However, the passage by the SEC will not be the final word in this development. —Jon McGowan, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024

Vince always had the last word there, often to the detriment of everyone beneath him. —Allison Morrow, CNN, 13 Feb. 2024

But that is probably not the last word on the subject. —Rick Noack, Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2024

For the Parisian fashion industry—which, pre-war, had been the final word in fashion—rehabilitation was dire. —Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 28 Feb. 2024