terminate

Terminate is defined as to end, to bring to an end or to destroy.

(verb)

An example of to terminate is to kill a colony of bugs living in a house.

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See terminate in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb terminated, terminating

  1. to bring to an end in space or time; form the end or conclusion of; limit, bound, finish, or conclude
  2. to put an end to; stop; cease
  3. ☆ to dismiss from employment; fire
  4. ☆ to assassinate: a euphemistic usage

Origin: < L terminatus, pp. of terminare, to end, limit < terminus: see term

intransitive verb

  1. to come to an end in space or time; stop; end
  2. to have its end (in something): a road terminating in woods

Related Forms:

See terminate in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb ter·mi·nat·ed, ter·mi·nat·ing, ter·mi·nates
verb, transitive
  1. To bring to an end or halt: “His action terminated the most hopeful period of reform in Prussian history” (Gordon A. Craig).
  2. To occur at or form the end of; conclude or finish: a display of fireworks that terminated the festivities.
  3. To discontinue the employment of; dismiss: a company that terminated 300 workers.
verb, intransitive
  1. To come to an end: The oil pipeline terminates at a shipping port. Negotiations terminated yesterday. See Synonyms at complete.
  2. To have as an end or result: “The Peloponnesian war … terminated in the ruin of the Athenian commonwealth” (Alexander Hamilton).

Origin:

Origin: Latin termināre, termināt-

Origin: , from terminus, end

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