last but one

English

English numbers (edit)
 ←  1 2 3   [a], [b], [c]
    Cardinal: two
    Ordinal: second
    Latinate ordinal: secondary
    Reverse order ordinal: second to last, second from last, last but one
    Latinate reverse order ordinal: penultimate
    Adverbial: two times, twice
    Multiplier: twofold
    Latinate multiplier: double
    Distributive: doubly
    Group collective: both, pair, twosome
    Multipart collective: doublet, couple, couplet
    Greek or Latinate collective: dyad
    Metric collective prefix: double-
    Greek collective prefix: di-, duo-
    Latinate collective prefix: bi-
    Fractional: half
    Metric fractional prefix: demi-
    Latinate fractional prefix: semi-
    Greek fractional prefix: hemi-
    Elemental: twin, doublet
    Greek prefix: deutero-
    Number of musicians: duo, duet, duplet
    Number of years: biennium

Adjective

last but one (not comparable)

  1. (now chiefly UK) Penultimate, next to last, immediately preceding the end of a sequence, list, etc.

Usage notes

In addition to the Latinate penultimate, the traditional English expressions for this idea were last but one and (less often) second last. Following the 1920s, American use has favored next to last to the point that last but one now functions as a Britishism. While last but one continues to be somewhat more popular in Britain, next to last, second to last, etc. have been gaining in popularity.

Synonyms

Translations

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