Nice Guys Finish Last - Wiktionary

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• 1 English Toggle English subsection
  • 1.1 Etymology
  • 1.2 Pronunciation
  • 1.3 Proverb
    • 1.3.1 Usage notes
    • 1.3.2 Translations
  • 1.4 See also
  • 1.5 References

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• Discussion

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English

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Etymology

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First appears in the US c. 1946, and condensed from a comment by the baseball manager Leo Durocher.[1] The original quote was The nice guys are all over there, in seventh place. (1946 July 6),[2][1] 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,[3] hence giving the present form.[1]

Pronunciation

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• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Proverb

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nice guys finish last

1. (idiomatic) 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.
   • 1956 November 19, “National Affairs: Nice Guy Finishes First”, in Time:The size of his victory . . . contradicted the maxim of latter-day fellow Californian Leo Durocher, who once said positively: "Nice guys finish last."
   • 1998 March 23, Seth Schiesel, “All Too Soon, New F.C.C. Chief Finds Warm Welcome Is Cooling”, in New York Times, retrieved 10 July 2012:"He can be as moderate as he likes. Nobody else will be. In Washington these days, nice guys finish last."
   • 2011 December 5, Richard Hall, “I didn't get where I am today by being nice... Study reveals agreeable men earn £4,500 less than their ruthless colleagues”, in The Independent, UK, retrieved 10 July 2012:Nonetheless, a team of business experts claims to have proved the pessimistic notion that "nice guys finish last" – at least where money is concerned.

Usage notes

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• Often expressed in a cynical manner.

Translations

[edit] 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 Hungarian: a rendesek végeznek mindig az utolsó helyen

See also

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• the good die young
• war makes thieves, and peace hangs them

References

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1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The Yale Book of Quotations, Fred R. Shapiro, Yale University Press, 2006, p. 221
2. ^ N.Y. Journal American, 1946 July 7
3. ^ Sporting News, 1946 July 17

• “nice guys finish last”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

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