playoff
n. countablen. an extra game or series of games played at the end of a season to decide who is the champion. You use this when teams have the same score or to find the final winner of a tournament.
n. a final contest or series of contests played to determine a champion after the regular season has concluded. Often used to break a tie or as part of a post-season tournament structure.
The team won the playoff and became the champions.
After finishing the season with identical records, the two teams met in a one-game playoff to decide the division winner.
The league structure dictates that only the top four teams qualify for the post-season playoff, where a single loss results in immediate elimination from the tournament.
Deverbal from play off; by surface analysis, play + -off.
Commonly used in the plural ('the playoffs') when referring to an entire post-season tournament.