Used for ordinal position, ranking, or the second item in a sequence. Can refer to a person or thing that is second best or the runner-up in a competition.
彼はマラソンで二番だった。
He came in second in the marathon.
I forgot the second verse of the song.
二番目の問題が一番難しかった。
The second question was the hardest.
彼はマラソンで二番になった。
He came in second in the marathon.
二号 labels something as the officially numbered 'No. 2' in a series, while 二番 more generally means 'second' in order, rank, or turn.
一番 means 'first' or 'number one', the direct ordinal opposite of 二番 'second'.
二番目 explicitly marks ordinal position ('the second one in a series'), whereas 二番 is often used as a plain label (e.g. the second verse of a song, a sumo bout number) without emphasizing sequence.
rehash; boring rerun; stale imitation · second brew of tea
second crop
double dip; double-dip recession; second bottom; double bottom
second star of the evening
second (in a series)
Standard kanji spelling; high frequency in news and general use.
Numerical variant common in lists, rankings, and informal writing.
Compound of 二 (ni, 'two') and 番 (ban, 'number' or 'order').
second mortgage
rematch after a long bout