/ ˈfɪnɪʃ; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
1.
to stop doing sth or making sth because it is complete :
[ vn ]
Haven't you finished your homework yet?
She finished law school last year.
a beautifully finished piece of furniture
He put the finishing touches to his painting (= did the things that made it complete) .
[ v -ing ]
Be quiet! He hasn't finished speaking.
[ v ]
I thought you'd never finish!
[also v speech ]
2.
to come to an end; to bring sth to an end :
[ v ]
The play finished at 10.30.
The symphony finishes with a flourish.
[ vn ]
A cup of coffee finished the meal perfectly.
3.
[ vn ] finish sth (off / up) to eat, drink or use what remains of sth :
He finished off his drink with one large gulp.
We might as well finish up the cake.
4.
to be in a particular state or position at the end of a race or a competition :
[ v - adj ]
She was delighted to finish second.
The dollar finished the day slightly down.
[ v ]
He finished 12 seconds outside the world record.
5.
[ vn ] finish sb (off) ( informal ) to make sb so tired or impatient that they cannot do any more :
Climbing that hill really finished me off.
A lecture from my parents now would just finish me.
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- finish sb/sth off
- finish sth off
- finish up ...
- finish with sb
- finish with sth
- finish (up) with sth
■ noun
1.
[ C , usually sing. ] the last part or the end of sth :
a dramatic finish to the race
It was a close finish , as they had predicted.
They won in the end but it was a tight finish .
The story was a lie from start to finish .
I want to see the job through to the finish .
—see also photo finish
2.
[ C , U ] the last covering of paint, polish, etc. that is put onto the surface of sth; the condition of the surface :
a gloss / matt finish
furniture available in a range of finishes
3.
[ C , U ] the final details that are added to sth to make it complete :
The bows will give a feminine finish to the curtains.
•
IDIOMS
see fight verb
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French feniss- , lengthened stem of fenir , from Latin finire , from finis end.