Is it correct: She's the second smartest woman in the world?

[Marc56]

Hi Alan

Is it correct to say:

'He is the second handsome man...'
'She's the second smartest woman in the world.'
'She lives next door but one.' (meaning there are two houses next to mine, and she lives in house number two?)
'I was last but two in the race yesterday.' (meaning, there were two other persons who went over the finish line after me?)

Thanks
Marc

[Alan]

Hi Marc,

The first sentence is the one I would reject as it stands. You could also continue with the sentence and say: He is the second handsome man I have met. The other three are fine.

Alan
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English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Are you fancy free?

[Marc56]

Thank you Alan. I love this forum. I am an English teacher from Belgium. Sometimes I don't find a satisfactory answer in Swan or other grammar books. But, here you are and I can ask my questions.