finish

American  

[fin-ish] / ˈfɪn ɪʃ /

verb (used with object)

• finishes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• finished,
  past participle,  past
• finishing
  present participle

1. 

   to bring (something) to an end or to completion; complete.

   to finish a novel; to finish breakfast.

   Synonyms:

   close, conclude, terminate

2. to come to the end of (a course, period of time, etc.).

   to finish school.

3. to use completely (often followed by up oroff ).

   to finish up a can of paint; to finish off the rest of the milk.

4. to overcome completely; destroy or kill (often followed byoff ).

   This spray will finish off the cockroaches.

5. to complete and perfect in detail; put the final touches on (sometimes followed byup ).

   He decided to finish his plan more carefully.

   She finished up a painting.

6. to put a finish on (wood, metal, etc.).

   We finished the desk in antique red lacquer.

7. to perfect (a person) in education, accomplishments, social graces, etc.

8. to ready (livestock) for market by feeding a diet calculated to produce the desired weight.

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verb (used without object)

• finishes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• finished,
  past participle,  past
• finishing
  present participle

1. to come to an end.

   The course finishes in January.

2. to complete a course, project, etc. (sometimes followed byup ).

   I finished before he did. It was nine o'clock when we finished up.

3. (of livestock) to become fattened for market.

noun

• finishes
  plural

1. the end or conclusion; the final part or last stage.

2. the end of a hunt, race, etc..

   a close finish.

3. a decisive ending.

   a fight to the finish.

4. the quality of being finished or completed with smoothness, elegance, etc..

   to admire the finish of one's writing.

5. educational or social polish.

6. the manner in which an object is perfected or finished in its preparation, or an effect imparted in finishing.

7. the surface coating or texture of wood, metal, etc.

8. something used or serving to finish, complete, or perfect a thing.

9. woodwork or the like, especially in the interior of a building, not essential to the structure but used for purposes of ornament, neatness, etc..

   a finish of black walnut.

10. Also called finishing coat, finish coat. a final coat of plaster or paint.

11. a material for application in finishing.

12. Animal Husbandry. the fat tissue of livestock.

13. the flavor remaining in the mouth after a wine has been swallowed.

verb phrase

1. finish with

   1. to bring to completion.

      She's finished with her latest novel.

   2. to put aside, break all relations with, or reject finally.

      He's finished with football and will play only baseball now.

      After the way they treated us, we're finished with them.

finish British  

/ ˈfɪnɪʃ /

verb

1. to bring to an end; complete, conclude, or stop

2. to be at or come to the end; use up

3. to bring to a desired or complete condition

4. to put a particular surface texture on (wood, cloth, etc)

5. (often foll by off) to destroy or defeat completely

6. to train (a person) in social graces and talents

7. 1. to end a relationship or association

   2. to stop punishing a person

      I haven't finished with you yet!

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noun

1. the final or last stage or part; end

2. 1. the death, destruction, or absolute defeat of a person or one side in a conflict

      a fight to the finish

   2. the person, event, or thing that brings this about

3. 1. the surface texture or appearance of wood, cloth, etc

      a rough finish

   2. a preparation, such as varnish, used to produce such a texture

4. a thing, event, etc, that completes

5. completeness and high quality of workmanship

6. refinement in social graces

7. sport ability to sprint at the end of a race

   he has a good finish

finish Idioms  

1. see from soup to nuts (start to finish); in at the death (finish).

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Synonym Usage

See end ¹.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• finisher
  noun
• prefinish
  verb (used with object)
• nonfinishing
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• finishes
  plural

Participles

• finishing
  present
• finished
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• finish
  simple
• finishes
  simple
• have finished
  perfect
• has finished
  perfect
• am finishing
  progressive
• are finishing
  progressive
• is finishing
  progressive
• have been finishing
  perfect progressive
• has been finishing
  perfect progressive

Past

• finished
  simple
• had finished
  perfect
• was finishing
  progressive
• were finishing
  progressive
• had been finishing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will finish
  simple
• will have finished
  perfect
• will be finishing
  progressive
• will have been finishing
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of finish

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English finisshen, from Anglo-French, Middle French finiss-, long stem of finir, from Latin fīnīre “to end”; see fine ¹

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Explanation

To finish something is to complete it or bring it to a conclusion. If you finished a race, you completed it — even if you didn’t come in first. Finishing is about concluding. If you finished a novel, you read the whole thing. Finishing a job means the job is done. This word can also refer to a coating or polish used to make furniture look nicer or fancier. If you say someone has a finished look about them, they don’t actually have a coating or polish, of course — but the effect is the same. They have a clean, cultured, polished appearance.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

finish finishes finished finishing

Chief among them is the tension between Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc after they contrived to throw away a potential one-two finish in Mexico last Sunday by tangling on the first lap.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026

For a quick stroganoff-ish dinner, I’ll simmer them with mushrooms, frozen aromatics, a gravy packet and fresh thyme, then finish everything with sour cream.

From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2026

Somehow Serra upset Sherman Oaks Notre Dame last week, then won a coin flip to finish in third place in the Mission League.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026

"Otherwise I'll just finish the job," he told Fox News.

From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026

When I sat down, Mr. Weiss whispered across the table, "Don't forget that you finished the race. Thirty-six mushers out of the seventy-one who started didn't finish."

From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell

Its combination of contemporary finishes, expansive entertaining spaces, and outdoor amenities also makes it a distinctive offering in Charlotte’s luxury residential market.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026

It isn’t cool, per se, but remains an entity that demolishes traditional cultural standards, be they incongruous high-end finishes and fixtures or burgers topped with fried macaroni and cheese balls and cheddar sauce.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

Perez sits bottom of the 2026 standings, with three 14th-place finishes – in Barcelona, Silverstone, and Azerbaijan – his best performances.

From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026

A representative for My Chemical Romance, which finishes it run at Hollywood Bowl this Friday and Saturday, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 26, 2026

After a baby finishes his 12th month, we all say that the child is one year old; he has finished his first 12 months of life.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Japan’s Nikkei closed 6.0% lower in its worst day since April 2025, while South Korea’s Kospi also finished 6.0% lower.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

“On 16 I had an eight-footer for par that lipped out and she parred, so now all of a sudden I’m down one,” said Phillips, who finished with three birdies, an eagle and four bogeys.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026

It finished 6.0% lower on the day, bringing weekly losses to 12%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

He kept adding to that total and finished on 146 goals in 234 caps - also a record for international appearances.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

I wasn’t planning on coming today, but when I saw that his truck was gone, I came here instead of going home after I was finished at the pool.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Derive traders now price in a 55% chance of Bitcoin finishing above $80,000 Friday, versus 5% at its overnight low, and roughly 10% odds of falling below $78,000.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

I also love tossing green cabbage with miso butter, roasting it until the edges begin to brown, and finishing it with lemony, toasted panko breadcrumbs.

From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2026

The specific term they used was “25 delta,” meaning those with a one-in-four chance of finishing in the money, or about 7% to 10% above the current market price.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026

Turkey is currently putting the finishing touches on the first reactor of its Akkuyu nuclear power plant, which should be online by the start of 2027, Bayraktar told an energy summit last week.

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

Roosevelt believed that every effort should be made to give each person an equal chance of finishing the expedition alive.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

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Related Words

• accomplish
• achieve
• clinch
• close
• complete
• conclude
• do
• end
• make
• play out
• settle
• stop
• wind up
• wrap up

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