come out on top

come out on top (third-person singular simple present comes out on top, present participle coming out on top, simple past came out on top, past participle come out on top)

1. To result victorious after a long period of struggle, competition, etc.

   He ultimately came out on top after some initial loses in the first few electoral contests.

• “come out on top”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “come out on top”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “come out on top” in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Longman.