Meanings
alternative neck-and-neck · alternative neck in neck
- idiomaticVery close in progress, as in a race or a contest.
The polls suggest that the candidates were neck and neck in the election.
4 more examples
It lay between me and Dick Riot madam; we were neck and neck for three miles, as hard as we could lay leg to ground, and running every inch, but at the first, I felt for him, found I had the foot […]
1779, Charles Macklin, Love à-la-mode, etc., page 20Mr. Prendergast's Rainbow filly, watched closely by Paul Jones, took the lead, and they ran almost neck and neck until near the cords, when Paul Jones made a rush, and came home by a length.
1825 November, “Sporting Intelligence”, in Sporting Magazine, volume 17, number 98, page 45[...] Mr. M. N. Rollason points out that on four-track lines on which the fast lines, in the centre, are flanked by the slow lines, and running at speed is permissible on all four, the traveller can enjoy some quite exciting experiences when trains are doing a "neck-and-neck" on adjacent lines.
1944 May and June, “Notes and News: Express Travel on Slow Lines”, in Railway Magazine, page 184Passing Iver, W.R. 4-6-0 No. 1012 County of Denbigh on the up "Capitals United Express" runs neck-and-neck with a parcels train headed by 4-6-0 No. 6821 Leaton Grange.
1960 July, Trains Illustrated, page 410, photo captionSynonyms: nip and tuck
Synonyms & antonyms
phraseVery close in progress, as in a race or a contest.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectiveinconclusive as to outcome; close or just even in a race or comparison or competition
adverbeven or close in a race or competition or comparison
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Figurative, from the image of competing horses abreast in a horse race who are so even (headed for a tie) that their necks are side-by-side.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Catalan frec a frec
- frec a frecvery close in progress
Chinese Cantonese 叮噹馬頭 /叮当马头
- 叮噹馬頭 /叮当马头 (ding¹ dong¹ maa⁵ tau⁴)very close in progress
Chinese Mandarin 並駕齊驅 /并驾齐驱, 勢均力敵 /势均力敌
- 並駕齊驅 /并驾齐驱 (bìngjiàqíqū)very close in progress
- 勢均力敵 /势均力敌 (shìjūnlìdí)very close in progress
- 不相伯仲 (bùxiàngbózhòng)very close in progress
- 不相上下 (bùxiāngshàngxià)very close in progress
- 不分軒輊 /不分轩轾 (bùfēnxuānzhì)very close in progress
- 旗鼓相當 /旗鼓相当 (qígǔxiāngdāng)very close in progress
- 平分秋色 (píngfēnqiūsè)very close in progress
Dutch nek aan nek
- nek aan nekvery close in progress
Finnish rinta rinnan, ritirinnan
- rinta rinnanvery close in progress
- ritirinnanvery close in progress
French coude à coude
- coude à coudevery close in progress
German Kopf an Kopf
- Kopf an Kopfvery close in progress
Greek σώμα με σώμα, στήθος με στήθος
- σώμα με σώμα (sóma me sóma)very close in progress
- στήθος με στήθος (stíthos me stíthos)very close in progress
Hungarian fej fej mellett
- fej fej mellettvery close in progress
Irish gob ar ghob, gob le gob
- gob ar ghobvery close in progress
- gob le gobvery close in progress
Korean 막상막하
- 막상막하 (maksangmakha)very close in progress
Polish łeb w łeb
- łeb w łebvery close in progress
Portuguese pau a pau, emparelhado
- pau a pauvery close in progress
- emparelhadovery close in progress
Russian ноздря́ в ноздрю, вро́вень
- ноздря́ в ноздрю (nozdrjá v nozdrju)very close in progress
- вро́вень (vróvenʹ)very close in progress
Spanish cabeza a cabeza, parejos
- cabeza a cabezavery close in progress
- parejosvery close in progress
- igualadosvery close in progress
Turkish başa baş
- başa başvery close in progress
Cite this entry
neck and neck. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/neck%20and%20neck
“neck and neck.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/neck%20and%20neck. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “neck and neck,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/neck%20and%20neck.
Source: neck and neck on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.