finalist

[fahyn-l-ist]

noun

a person entitled to participate in the final or decisive contest in a series, as in musical or athletic competition.

Origin of finalist

First recorded in 1895–1900; final + -ist

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for finalist

Contemporary Examples of finalist

For months, I struggled with the decision and after being rejected as a finalist from a fellowship I found myself at a crossroads.
There’s No Better Test for Millennials than the American City
Michael Tubbs
April 19, 2014
The duo also thanked mentor—and former CVFF finalist—Prabal Gurung for his assistance and support.
CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Honors Emerging Talent
Erin Cunningham
November 12, 2013
We learn that Rachel is a finalist for the part of Fanny Brice in the revival of Funny Girl.
The First ‘Glee’ Without Cory Monteith Was Blissfully Joyous
Kevin Fallon
September 27, 2013
The 2013 fiction judges: Charles Baxter was a finalist for the National Book Award in fiction in 2000 for The Feast of Love.
The National Book Awards Longlist for Fiction
September 19, 2013
René Steinke was a 2005 National Book Award finalist in fiction for her novel Holy Skirts.
The National Book Awards Longlist for Fiction
September 19, 2013

Historical Examples of finalist

Already the finalist theory of life eludes all precise verification.
Creative Evolution
Henri Bergson
This reason is a logical necessity, but the logical necessity does not prove the teleological or finalist necessity.
Tragic Sense Of Life
Miguel de Unamuno
The finalist or teleological conception is not any more tenable, for Evolution is not simply the realization of a plan.
Bergson and His Philosophy
J. Alexander Gunn

British Dictionary definitions for finalist

finalist

noun

a contestant who has reached the last and decisive stage of a sports or other competition

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for finalist

"competitor remaining after eliminations," 1898, from final + -ist.