also-ran
A person or animal who competed in a race, or other competition, but did not winA person or animal who competed in a race, or other competition, but did not win.
Meaning
2 sensesA person or animal who competed in a race, or other competition, but did not win.
ferner liefen
(figuratively)A loser; a person or thing soon to be forgotten.
- a contestant who loses the contest
Translations
2 languagesBy meaning 1
Origin
From the world of horse race betting, where lists of winners would be published with non-pFrom the world of horse race betting, where lists of winners would be published with non-paying positions printed in a block under the heading “Also Ran”.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Dictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.