home stretchn.
/ˌhəʊm ˈstrɛtʃ/, U.S. /ˈˌhoʊm ˈstrɛtʃ/ Originally U.S.
1. Chiefly Horse Racing. The stretch of a racetrack that leads to the finish line; = home straight n. 1.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > racing or race > [noun] > course or track > parts of
run-in1799
quarter-stretch1830
home run1833
hurdle1833
back stretch1839
home stretch1841
straight1846
last lap1848
straightaway1878
home straight1880
stretch1895
back-straight1905
the wall1974
1841 Daily Picayune (New Orleans) 19 Jan. 1/6 At the head of the home stretch Cowboy overtook him and..beat him out by a length.
1860 Yale Literary Mag. 26 83 The first boat in is the winner of the race, so round they turn, and ‘beef her’ for the home stretch.
1886 L. Richardson Dark City xiii. 144 We managed to get a tolerably good place by the rail, about half way down the home-stretch.
1903 A. D. McFaul Ike Glidden in Maine xxii. 200 When rounding into the home stretch his horse broke, and suddenly went to a wild swerving break that carried him to the complete outside of the track.
1986 Bicycling Aug. 70/1 Seeing Davis Phinney come down the homestretch wound out in 53x12 is an object lesson in just how fast a bike can go.
2005 B. Dragin 6 to 5 Against vii. 50 As the horses go into the turn for the home stretch, the crowd responds with its inevitable roar.
2. figurative. The last part or phase of a journey, activity, or task.
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1860 Ohio Educ. Monthly Dec. 366 Through the first of each sentence the rate was gradually increased... Sufficient momentum having been obtained, every one came in on the ‘home stretch’ of the last half out of breath and in double quick time.
1894 ‘M. Twain’ Pudd'nhead Wilson viii. 69 She took the little local packet at Cairo, and now she was on the home-stretch.
1904 G. Stratton-Porter Freckles ix You couldn't break the heart of me entire quicker than to be taking it from me now, when I'm just on the home-stretch.
1948 Life 6 Sept. 17/1 On Labor Day the 16 big-league baseball teams turn into the home stretch.
1968 Daily Tel. 4 Nov. 17/1 It was a furious home-stretch spurt that will last until he reaches his home in Minnesota at five a.m. on Tuesday, election day.
2001 J. Franzen Corrections 461 She was upstairs flogging herself through the home stretch of Christmas prep.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2011; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1841