Wiktionary

final whistle

English

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WOTD – 11 August 2024

Etymology

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From final (adjective) +‎ whistle.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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final whistle (plural final whistles)

  1. (sports) The blow of the whistle by the referee or other adjudicator signifying the end of a match.
    Antonym: starting whistle
    Coordinate terms: checkered flag, chequered flag
    • 1888 July, “Chat”, in Demorest’s Monthly Magazine, volume XXIV, number 9 (number CCCI overall), New York, N.Y.: W[illiam] Jennings Demorest, →OCLC, page 583, column 2:
      Before the next [tennis] game begins, the players in each court change partners: and the same routine is followed until the time agreed upon has elapsed, when the final whistle is sounded, scores are added up, and prizes awarded.
    • 1910 January 15, Bernard Finch, “The Outside Right: A Football Story”, in The Boy’s Own Paper, volume XXXII, number 16 (number 1618 overall), London: “Boy’s Own Paper” Office, […], →OCLC, page 255, column 2:
      Only fifteen minutes now remained before the referee would blow the final whistle, and both teams exerted every effort to gain the mastery.
    • 1949, “Basketball”, in The 1949 Cornellian, Ithaca, N.Y.: The 1949 Cornellian Board for the students of Cornell University, →OCLC, page 313, column 2:
      On December 14 Cornell's green, soph-laden basketball team tasted its first defeat as it fell before an experienced Niagara five. […] The second half Niagara jumped into the lead and held it until the final whistle.
    • 2006, Wayne Rooney, “Introduction”, in Wayne Rooney: The Way It Is, London: HarperSport, HarperCollinsPublishers, published 2007, →ISBN, page 3:
      It ended 1–0 to West Ham, and at the final whistle their players were going mad, knowing they were staying up [i.e., not being relegated].
    • 2011 January 8, Paul Fletcher, “Stevenage 3 – 1 Newcastle”, in BBC Sport‎[1], archived from the original on 2023-01-01:
      The final whistle prompted a pitch invasion – although there appeared to be an unwanted incident when a supporter seemed to punch Stevenage's Scott Laird, who subsequently fell to the ground.

Translations

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See also

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Further reading

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