From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfirst/second/third etc placefirst/second/third etc placeFIRSTfirst, second etc position in a race or competition He took second place in the long jump.in first/second etc place I finished in third place. → place
Examples from the Corpus
first/second/third etc place• In the opening 250 race Robert Dunlop stayed well clear of a hectic battle for second place behind him.• Why had they come to this country in the first place?• But I think I got into drama professionally in the first place by accident.• There is almost a tinge of predestination in footballers' reflections on how they came to sport in the first place.• We never enjoyed them in the first place.• The firm which supplied the scaffold blames the boy's parents for letting him play there in the first place.• But it's even more of a comfort for baby if he doesn't get wind in the first place.• In the second place, it involves some intention to maintain that control on the part of the possessor. 