tiebreaker

noun

tie·​break·​er ˈtī-ˌbrā-kər 

plural tiebreakers

1

: an additional contest or period of play used to select a winner when a competition or part of a competition ends in a tie

… after a 90-minute rain delay in the third set, won a riveting tiebreaker.

—L. Jon Wertheim

called also tiebreak

2

: a person whose vote breaks a tie

The vice president served as a tiebreaker in the last Senate vote.

3

: a final vote, point, or score that determines the winner in a contest

She cast the tiebreaker.

Examples of tiebreaker in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But Miami is really two losses behind Orlando because the Magic hold the head-to-head tiebreaker after sweeping the regular-season series 5-0. —Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 24 Mar. 2026

Saturday night’s final was a rematch of the Big Ten Championships, won in tiebreakers by Welsh, 2-1. —Twin Cities, 22 Mar. 2026

Poway’s Lucas Condon (13-15), a red-shirt sophomore for Wisconsin, lost a pair of 4-1 decisions, one in a tiebreaker. —Kevin J. Farmer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026

The Lakers have climbed from sixth to third in the Western Conference in two weeks, netting critical tiebreakers against rivals Minnesota, Denver and Houston. —Los Angeles Times, 20 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1904, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Rhymes for tiebreaker

• blackacre
• caretaker
• clockmaker
• dressmaker
• filmmaker
• homemaker
• icebreaker
• lawmaker
• matchmaker
• pacemaker
• partaker
• peacemaker