Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms, Wikipedia.


also front·run·ner (frŭnt′rŭn′ər)
1. One that is in a leading position in a race or other competition: the front-runner for the presidential nomination.
2. A competitor who performs best when in the lead.

front′-run′ning adj.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.front-runner - a competitor thought likely to win
challenger, competitor, contender, rival, competition - the contestant you hope to defeat; "he had respect for his rivals"; "he wanted to know what the competition was doing"


also frontrunner
A leading contestant:
References in periodicals archive ?
FINN Harps' influential defender Gavin Dykes has poured cold water on reports that he's a front-runner for the now vacant Sligo Rovers managerial job.
Seductive Witch, a front-runner who rallied to share the spoils in the 6f handicap, cost plenty of in-running backers a packet, with the progressive but quirky Wynberg hammered down to 1.
How far they ran proved more important than where, Siren Lure and jockey Alex Solis catching front-runner Pure as Gold and Jon Court in the final 100 yards of the 7-furlong O'Brien.
The Kevin Ryan-trained three-year-old was the only confirmed front-runner in the field but went virtually unconsidered in the betting, having struggled to rediscover his juvenile form in three starts this season.
But Arizona State might be the front-runner now that his high school coach, Scott Pera, will be an assistant with the Sun Devils.
20 Thirsk) has run his best races from the front, and David Barker has won more than one sprint up the far side here with a front-runner.
Singletary wins: Singletary returned to form in the Arcadia Handicap as the Breeders' Cup Mile champ tackled the front-runner on the turn and won the 1-mile turf race on the Santa Anita Derby undercard.