Phrase guide

nice guys finish last

proverb · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

proverb

Meaning 1

People who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed by others who are not so decent, friendly, or agreeable.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

First appears in the US c. 1946, and condensed from a comment by the baseball manager Leo Durocher. The original quote was The nice guys are all over there, in seventh place. (1946 July 6), about the 1946 New York Giants — seventh place was next-to-last place in the National League. This was shortly afterwards rendered as ‘Nice Guys’ Wind Up in Last Place, Scoffs Lippy, hence giving the present form.

Across languages

Translations

3 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Asturian: el gochu más ruin ye'l que más revuelve na cubil — people who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed
  • French: qui se fait brebis le loup le mange — people who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed
  • Hungarian: a rendesek végeznek mindig az utolsó helyen — people who are decent, friendly, and agreeable tend to be unsuccessful because they are outmaneuvered or overwhelmed