0
Moon7296 Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary
translation
1. He made it to the finals, only to lose there.
When I saw the single sentence, #1, I didn't know what "finals" and the phrase "only to lose there" mean exactly. Am I the only one who don't understand it clearly?
When I saw the single sentence, #1, I didn't know what "finals" and the phrase "only to lose there" mean exactly. Am I the only one who don't understand it clearly?
Top answer
org/dictionary/american-english/final_2 You will often hear the plural form used, as there may be several last matches, each in a different category.
- org/dictionary/american-english/final_2 You will often hear the plural form used, as there may be several last matches, each in a different category.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
2 Answers
0
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/american-english/final_2
You will often hear the plural form used, as there may be several last matches, each in a different category.
You will often hear the plural form used, as there may be several last matches, each in a different category.
00
That is a non-literal and common use of "only" (AHD, adverb, def. 4). "Only to lose there" means "Despite all their effort in reaching the last playoff games, they failed right at the end. They might as well have saved themselves the trouble and lost sooner.".
0
Related Questions