runner-up
Americannoun
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runners-up
plural
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the competitor, player, or team finishing in second place, as in a race, contest, or tournament.
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runners-up, the competitors who do not win a contest but who place ahead of the majority of the contestants and share in prizes or honors, as those who place second, third, and fourth, or in the top ten.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of runner-up
First recorded in 1835–45
Explanation
In a competition, the runner-up is usually the person who comes in second place. In the Olympics, an athlete who wins a silver medal can be called a runner-up. In beauty pageants, there are often first, second, and third-place winners, followed by a runner-up. At the state fair, if your pig gets a blue ribbon and your sister's gets a red one, it means your pig won, and your sister's pig was the runner-up. The earliest use of this word, in the 1840s, was in dog racing.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Most of the anxiety-slash-blame was dumped upon Maye, the third-year quarterback and reigning MVP runner-up who’d guided New England to a 14-3 regular season and a run to the Super Bowl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
His father Gwyndaf was British champion, as well as runner-up four times, but the ruddy-cheeked farmer never got the break to complete on the world stage.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Our critic noted, “By the competition’s end, winner, runner-up and the rest have all been enriched by the experience—and so, not incidentally, has the audience.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
And it is currently unclear whether Andrew Feinstein, the independent runner-up to Sir Keir in the constituency at the 2024 general election, will stand too which could split the vote.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
“You know what they say — the first runner-up is important in case anything should happen to Miss Teen Dream,” Shanti called.
From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray
England welcome back the experienced Amy Cokayne at hooker as their 41-match unbeaten run goes on the line against Rugby World Cup runners-up Canada in Toronto on Friday.
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
England's lack of ruthlessness in front of goal has been an occurring theme since 2023 when they finished runners-up to Spain in the World Cup.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
Sarina Wiegman's side are looking to secure their place in Brazil next year but have to navigate the play-offs after finishing runners-up in their qualification group.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
The Lionesses are also not used to being in play-offs, a route they are having to take after finishing runners-up to world champions Spain in their qualifying group.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
On the fuzzy black-and-white screen, Gary Collins starts announcing the runners-up.
From "Like Vanessa" by Tami Charles
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