Jump To:

• second best
  second best

  noun

  the next to the best in performance, achievement, craftsmanship, etc.
• second-best
  second-best

  adjective

  next to the best

second best

American  

noun

1. the next to the best in performance, achievement, craftsmanship, etc.

---

second-best British  

adjective

1. next to the best

2. informal to be defeated in competition

---

noun

1. an inferior alternative

second best Idioms  

1. Also, second class. Next after the first in rank or quality, inferior to the best, as in We aren't satisfied with being second best in sales, or This hotel is obviously second class. The first term dates from the first half of the 1400s, the variant from about 1800. Also see come off, def. 2; second class.

---

Other Word Forms

• second-best
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of second best

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

second best second-best

“Chad, the best time to have dropped out would have been a couple of weeks ago, but the second best time is right now.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026

Being second best has been a theme this season, too, with Andy Farrell's Ireland and Ulster also the best of the rest in the other competitions.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

Leo Cullen's side lost by a score to La Rochelle in 2022 and 2023 and took Toulouse to extra time in 2024, but they were comfortably second best to Bordeaux in the Bilbao heat.

From BBC ● May 23, 2026

South Korean stocks just registered their second best month ever and has overtaken one of the largest stock markets in the world.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026

“You’re the second best pilot in the squadron, Johnson. You are talking to the best.”

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

If that holds, it would make for SpaceX’s second-best trading day since its initial public offering last month, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026

Has their second-best World Cup ever been under-appreciated?

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

Disney’s “Toy Story 5” opened to an estimated $312 million globally, marking the second-best debut for a Pixar animated film.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026

SoFi is up 17% over the short week, marking its second-best weekly performance this year.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

I used to think she was the second-best mom in the entire world, until she fired my mom and I decided to hate her.

From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller