What does "end" mean?
The terminal point of something in space or time.
End
/ɛnd/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The terminal point of something in space or time.
- Grammar: end is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: conclusion, finish, goal, stop.
- Useful contrasts: agonizing, ancient remains, danish grund.
- Usage evidence: That is somewhat explained at the end.
How to use "end"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "end" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "end" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "end" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "end" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "end" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "conclusion" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "end", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The terminal point of something in space or time.
"they followed him... into a sort of a central hall; out of which they could dimly see other long tunnel-like passages branching, passages mysterious and without apparent end."
- 2 A key that when pressed causes the cursor to go to the last character of the current line.
- 3 Acronym of equivalent narcotic depth. abbreviation, acronym, alt-of
- 4 (American football) a position on the line of scrimmage, designating players at each end of the defensive line wordnet
- 5 The cessation of an effort, activity, state, or motion. broadly
"Is there no end to this madness?"
Show 24 more definitions
- 6 the part you are expected to play wordnet
- 7 Death. broadly, often, with-definite-article
"He met a terrible end in the jungle."
- 8 a piece of cloth that is left over after the rest has been used or sold wordnet
- 9 The most extreme point of an object, especially one that is longer than it is wide.
"Hold the string at both ends."
- 10 a final part or section wordnet
- 11 Result.
"O that a man might know / The end of this day's business ere it come!"
- 12 the state of affairs that a plan is intended to achieve and that (when achieved) terminates behavior intended to achieve it wordnet
- 13 A purpose, goal, or aim.
"For what end should I toil?"
- 14 the last section of a communication wordnet
- 15 One of the two parts of the ground used as a descriptive name for half of the ground.
"The Pavillion End"
- 16 the final stage or concluding parts of an event or occurrence wordnet
- 17 The position at the end of either the offensive or defensive line, a tight end, a split end, a defensive end.
"Her husband, among various physical accomplishments, had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven […]."
- 18 a boundary marking the extremities of something wordnet
- 19 A period of play in which each team throws eight rocks, two per player, in alternating fashion.
- 20 either extremity of something that has length wordnet
- 21 An ideal point of a graph or other complex. See End (graph theory)
- 22 the surface at either extremity of a three-dimensional object wordnet
- 23 That which is left; a remnant; a fragment; a scrap.
"odds and ends"
- 24 one of two places from which people are communicating to each other wordnet
- 25 One of the yarns of the worsted warp in a Brussels carpet.
- 26 (football) the person who plays at one end of the line of scrimmage wordnet
- 27 Money. in-plural, slang
"Don't give them your ends. You jack that shit!"
- 28 a final state wordnet
- 29 the point in time at which something ends wordnet
Verb
- 1 To come to an end. ergative, intransitive
"Is this movie never going to end?"
- 2 bring to an end or halt wordnet
- 3 To conclude; to bring something to an end. intransitive
"The orchestra ended with a performance of Dvořák."
- 4 put an end to wordnet
- 5 To finish, terminate. transitive
"The referee blew the whistle to end the game."
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 have an end, in a temporal, spatial, or quantitative sense; either spatial or metaphorical wordnet
- 7 be the end of; be the last or concluding part of wordnet
Example
"That is somewhat explained at the end."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "end"?
Common synonyms include: conclusion, finish, goal, stop, terminate, abandon.
How do you use "end" in a sentence?
That is somewhat explained at the end.
How do you pronounce "end"?
Pronounced /ɛnd/.
Etymology
From Middle English ende, from Old English ende, from Proto-West Germanic *andī, from Proto-Germanic *andijaz (“end”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂entíos (“forehead; front”), from *h₂ent- (“face; forehead; front”), from *h₂en- (“on, onto”). Cognates Cognate with Yola een, eene (“end”), Saterland Frisian Eend, Eende (“end”), West Frisian ein (“end”), Alemannic German End, Endi (“end”), Central Franconian Eng, Enk (“end”), Cimbrian énte (“end”), Dutch eind, einde, end (“end”), German Ende (“end”), Luxembourgish Enn (“end”), Vilamovian end, ent (“end”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk ende (“end”), Faroese endi (“end”), Icelandic endi, endir (“end”), Swedish ända, ände (“end”), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹𐍃 (andeis, “end”); also Irish éadan (“end; front”), Manx eddin (“face; front”), Scottish Gaelic aodann (“face; hillside”), Latin antiae (“forelock”), Ancient Greek ἀντίος (antíos, “opposite”), Albanian anë (“brink; edge; facet; side”), Latvian no (“for; from”), Lithuanian nuo (“for; from”), Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, and Ukrainian на (na, “on”), Czech, Kashubian, Lower Sorbian, Polish, Slovak, and Slovene na (“on”), Serbo-Croatian на, na (“on”), Old Armenian ընդ (ənd, “in the place, instead of”), Old Persian 𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎹 (abiy, “against; towards; upon”), Tocharian A ānt (“in front”), Tocharian B ānte (“in front of”), Sanskrit अन्त (anta, “boundary; border, edge; end, termination”). More at and and anti-. The verb is from Middle English enden, endien, from Old English endian (“to end, to make an end of, complete, finish, abolish, destroy, come to an end, die”), from Proto-Germanic *andijōną (“to finish, end”), denominative from *andijaz.