penultimate
Just before last
Penultimate means next to the last: Our penultimate speaker represents a delegation from the office of cultural development.
In the study of grammar and poetry, penultimate refers to the penult, the next to last syllable in a word: “Copasetic” is stressed on the penultimate syllable.
In this context, penultimate is one of a group of words that refer to syllables in order, starting at the end: ultimate, penultimate, antepenultimate, and preantepenultimate.
position
Position before final
- next-to-lastImmediately preceding the final
- second-lastPosition before final
- penultSecond-to-last position
- runner-upCompetition's silver finisher
second-to-last
Position before final
- next-to-lastImmediately preceding the final
- second-lastPosition before final
- penultSecond-to-last position
climax
Point of greatest intensity
- culminationHighest or final point
- crescendoGradual increase in loudness
- finaleConcluding part of performance
apex · denouement · peak · threshold · brink · verge · countdown · eve · prelude · lead-up
- sequencesequence, first, second, third, fourth
- rankingsrankings, first, college rankings, second, third
- sequence wordsfirst, second, third, next, fourth
- fancy wordsgrandiloquent, magniloquent, sesquipedalian, pulchritudinous, tintinnabulation
- misused wordsliterally, irregardless, ironic, disinterested, nauseous
- ordinalsfirst, second, third, fourth, fifth