If the end of a race is a photo-finish, two or more of the competitors cross the finishing line so close together that aphotograph of the finish has to be examined to decide who has won.
He was just beaten in a photo-finish.
photo finish in British English
noun
1.
a finish of a race in which contestants are so close that a photograph is needed to decide the result
2.
any race or competition in which the winners or placed contestants are separated by a very small margin
photo-finish in British English
(ˌfəʊtəʊˈfɪnɪʃ)
noun
1.
the end of a race when two or more of the competitors cross the finishing line so close together that a photograph of the finish has to be examined to decide who has won
He was just beaten in a photo-finish.
They're neck-and-neck, head-and-head, in a furious battle to the wire. It's a photo-finish!
2.
any race or competition in which the winners or placed contestants are separated bya very small margin
It was a photo-finish at the American box office this weekend.
photo finish in American English
1.
a race finish so close that the winner can be determined only from a photograph of the contestants crossing the finish line
2.
any close finish of a contest
Examples of 'photo finish' in a sentence
photo finish
There is seldom less than a photo finish between them.
The Sun (2008)
If I did look like riding a winner, I'd be caught on the line or pipped in a photo finish.
Frankie Dettori with Jonathan Powell FRANKIE: The Autobiography of Frankie Dettori (2004)