Definition

1. Noun:

   • The final part of something: The point in time or space where something stops or ceases to exist.
   • A goal or purpose: The object toward which effort is directed; an aim.
   • Either of the two extreme points of something that has length: One of the terminal points or boundaries of an object, area, or period.
   • A remnant or leftover piece: A small remaining part of something, especially after the main part has been used.

2. Verb:

   • To bring something to a conclusion: To cause an activity, process, or state to finish.
   • To reach a final point or state: To come to a stop or conclusion; to terminate.

Usage and Examples

• Noun:

  • We reached the end of the road. (We arrived at the road's final point.)
  • His end was to become a doctor. (His goal was to become a doctor.)
  • She tied a knot at the end of the rope. (She tied a knot at one extremity of the rope.)
  • He used a candle end to seal the letter. (He used a small leftover piece of a candle.)

• Verb:

  • The meeting ended at five o'clock. (The meeting concluded at five.)
  • They ended their partnership. (They brought their partnership to a close.)

Advanced Usage

• "to end in": To have as a result; to conclude with a particular state or thing.
  • Their argument ended in a compromise.
• "to end up": To eventually reach a particular state or place, often unexpectedly.
  • If you're not careful, you'll end up in trouble.
• "at the end of the day": When everything is considered; ultimately.
  • At the end of the day, honesty is the best policy.
• "to make ends meet": To have just enough money to pay for one's basic needs.
  • They work hard to make ends meet.

Variants and Related Words

• Ending (n): The final part, especially of a story, film, or word.
  • I didn't like the movie's ending.
• Endless (adj): Having no end; seeming to continue forever.
  • The desert seemed endless.
• Endmost (adj): Situated at the very end.
  • The endmost house on the street.

Synonyms

• Noun: Conclusion, finish, termination, extremity, goal, objective, remnant.
• Verb: Conclude, finish, stop, terminate, cease.

Phrasal Verbs

• End off: To finish something in a particular way.
  • She ended off her speech with a quote.
• End with: To have something as the final part.
  • The concert ended with a fireworks display.

Idioms

• The end of the line/road: The point where something can no longer continue or develop.
  • This defeat marks the end of the road for his political career.
• A means to an end: A thing that is not valued or important in itself but is useful in achieving an aim.
  • For him, the job was just a means to an end.
• On end: Continuously, without stopping.
  • It rained for days on end.

Noun

1. (American football) a position on the line of scrimmage
   • no one wanted to play end
2. a piece of cloth that is left over after the rest has been used or sold
3. the last section of a communication
   • in conclusion I want to say...
4. the part you are expected to play
   • he held up his end
5. one of two places from which people are communicating to each other
   • the phone rang at the other end
   • both ends wrote at the same time
6. a boundary marking the extremities of something
   • the end of town
7. (football) the person who plays at one end of the line of scrimmage
   • the end managed to hold onto the pass
8. the surface at either extremity of a three-dimensional object
   • one end of the box was marked `This side up'
9. a final state
   • he came to a bad end
   • the so-called glorious experiment came to an inglorious end
10. a final part or section
    • we have given it at the end of the section since it involves the calculus
    • Start at the beginning and go on until you come to the end
11. the state of affairs that a plan is intended to achieve and that (when achieved) terminates behavior intended to achieve it
    • the ends justify the means
12. the concluding parts of an event or occurrence
    • the end was exciting
    • I had to miss the last of the movie
13. the point in time at which something ends
    • the end of the year
    • the ending of warranty period
14. either extremity of something that has length
    • the end of the pier
    • she knotted the end of the thread
    • they rode to the end of the line
    • the terminals of the anterior arches of the fornix

Verb

1. put an end to
   • The terrible news ended our hopes that he had survived
2. be the end of; be the last or concluding part of
   • This sad scene ended the movie
3. bring to an end or halt
   • She ended their friendship when she found out that he had once been convicted of a crime
   • The attack on Poland terminated the relatively peaceful period after WW I
4. have an end, in a temporal, spatial, or quantitative sense; either spatial or metaphorical
   • the bronchioles terminate in a capillary bed
   • Your rights stop where you infringe upon the rights of other
   • My property ends by the bushes
   • The symphony ends in a pianissimo