terminate

Verb
US[tur-muh-neyt]/ˈtɝməˌneɪt/3 syllables
Synonyms: endstopfinishceasedisplacefiregive noticecandismissgive the axesend awaysack

Open English WordNet

Verb (4)terminated, terminating

  1. 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”Synonyms: endMore general change, alterMore specific discontinue, complete, decide, interrupt, close, conclude, stamp out, dissolve, culminate, finalize +7 moreCauses end, stop
  2. 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”Synonyms: endstopfinishceaseMore general changeMore specific culminate, turn out, vanish, run out, adjourn, run low, conclude, go out, discontinue, lapse +4 more
  3. be the end of; be the last or concluding part of“This sad scene ended the movie”Synonyms: endMore general exist, beMore specific close
  4. terminate the employment of; discharge from an office or position“The boss fired his secretary today”“The company terminated 25% of its workers”Synonyms: displacefiregive noticecandismissgive the axesend awaysackforce outgive the sackMore general removeMore specific furlough, dismiss, retire, squeeze out, clean out, pension off

Related words terminative adjective, conclusion noun, terminus noun

Word of the day · Nov 3About this word
incessantadjective

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Webster's Dictionary (1913)

Ter′mi·nate transitive verb [past tense & past participle Terminated; present participle & verbal noun Terminating.]

Origin: L. terminatus, p. p. of terminare. See Term.

1. To set a term or limit to; to form the extreme point or side of; to bound; to limit; as, to terminate a surface by a line.

2. To put an end to; to make to cease; as, to terminate an effort, or a controversy.

3. Hence, to put the finishing touch to; to bring to completion; to perfect.

During this interval of calm and prosperity, he [Michael Angelo] terminated two figures of slaves, destined for the tomb, in an incomparable style of art.— John Scandrett Harford
Ter′mi·nate intransitive verb

1. To be limited in space by a point, line, or surface; to stop short; to end; to cease; as, the torrid zone terminates at the tropics.

2. To come to a limit in time; to end; to close.

The wisdom of this world, its designs and efficacy, terminate on zhis side heaven.— Robert South

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54

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