Meaning of end in English

end

noun

/end/ uk

/end/

end noun (LAST POINT)

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A2 [ C ]

the part of a place or thing that is farthest away from the center:

at the end This cable should have a plug at one end and a socket at the other.

the end of We damaged the end of the piano when we moved it.

Get to the end of the line and wait your turn like everyone else.

Our house is the third from the end on the left.

Is it safe to stand the computer on (its) end?

end to end

(also end-to-end)

arranged with one end of next to the end of something else:

Tables were arranged end to end across the basketball court.

A1 [ C ]

the final part of something such as a period of time, activity, or story:

at the end of I always like to leave my desk clear at the end of the day.

The end of the play was much more exciting than I'd expected.

at an end This latest injury means that her tennis career is now at an end (= finished).

no end to The statement said there would be no end to the violence until the terrorists' demands were met.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

the start of something

beginningLet's go back to the beginning. Can you tell me when you arrived at the crime scene?
startI didn't like him from the very start.
endThis is it – the end of the tour.
openingThe opening of the ceremony was marred by protest.
commencementWhat is the commencement date of their contract?
kickoffWhat time is the kickoff for the banquet and show?

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Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

the final part of something

endThis mammal roamed the steppes during the end of the last Ice Age.
closeStock prices were up 6 percent at the close of the trading day.
culminationThis starring role in a Broadway musical is the culmination of her years of hard work in local theaters.
completionAt the completion of the exam, please return the materials to the proctor's desk and exit the room quietly.
endpointBoth parties agree that they have reached a suitable endpoint to the negotiations.

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[ S ]

polite word for death:

We were all by her bedside when the end finally came.

meet your end He met his end (= died) in a shoot-out with the police.

[ C ]

either of the two halves of the field in some sports:

The teams change ends at halftime so that neither side has an unfair advantage.

bring something to an end

to make something finish:

He ran out of time and brought the interview to an end.

in the end

finally, after something has been thought about or discussed a lot:

We were thinking about going to Switzerland, but in the end we went to Austria.

for hours, days, etc. on end

for hours, days, etc. without stopping:

He used to lock himself in his bedroom for hours on end and refuse to talk to anyone.

come to an end

to finish:

Everyone wishes the war would come to an end soon.

More examplesFewer examples

Her office is at the end of the corridor.
Diplomacy has so far failed to bring an end to the fighting.
Where is the nozzle thing that you attach to the end of this tube?
The book has exercises at the end of every chapter.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Ends and endings

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Death and dying

Surfaces on which sports take place

end noun (PART OF GAME)

[ C ]

in sports including curling, lawn bowling, and archery, a part of a game, especially one in which each team or player throws or shoots toward one end of the playing area:

It was a close contest that came down to the last stone in the last end.

The Canadians took singles on each of the next three ends.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Parts & stages of competitions

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Winter sports

Bowls, bowling & croquet

Target sports

end noun (SMALL PART)

[ C ]

a small part of something that is left after most of it has been used:

She makes quilts out of fabric bolt ends.

cigarette end UK The floor was covered in cigarette ends.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Things remaining

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end noun (GOAL)

[ C ]

a goal, intention, or purpose:

Do you have a particular end in mind?

to this end

in order to achieve this goal:

He wanted science students to take an interest in the arts, and to this end he ran literature classes at his home on Sunday afternoons.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Goals and purposes

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end noun (TYPE OF ACTIVITY)

[ S ] informal

the parts of a task or process connected with one particular type of activity or person:

end of things Rick's more involved with the financial end of things.

someone's end of the bargain, deal, etc.

the area of activity for which someone is responsible:

We've kept our end of the deal - let's see if they keep theirs.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Duty, obligation and responsibility

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Idioms

at the end of the day
at the end of your rope
the end justifies the means
end of
end of day
end of story
the end of the line/road
get/have your end away
keep/hold your end up
make ends meet

More idioms

no end
no end of something
not be the end of the world
put an end to something

end

verb [ I or T ]

/end/ uk

/end/

to finish or stop, or to make something finish or stop:

When is your meeting due to end?

Her resignation ends months of speculation about her future.

Their marriage ended in 1991.

end in The game ended in a tie.

end with I'd like to end with a song from my first album.

She ended her speech on an optimistic note.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

to finish something

finishDid you finish your homework?
endWhat time does the concert end?
completeHave you completed the questionnaire?
concludeShe concluded her speech by thanking everyone who had helped her.
polish offHe's just polished off two huge bowls of pasta.
wind upIt's time to wind up the game now.

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More examplesFewer examples

Eventually, the two girls agreed to end their quarrel.
This was her final professional match, and she wanted to end her career in a blaze of glory.
Their marriage ended eight years ago in an acrimonious divorce.
The president ended his visit by laying a wreath at the war memorial.
In Britain, the spring term starts in January and ends just before Easter.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Causing something to end

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(Definition of end from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

end | Intermediate English

end

noun [ C ]

/end/

end noun [C] (LAST PART)

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the last or farthest part of something or of a period of time, beyond which it does not exist:

She tied one end of the rope to a tree.

The punctuation at the end of this sentence is a period.

Did you stay to the end of the movie?

Steve can swim to the far end of the lake and back.

at an end

To be at an end is to be finished:

His career was at an end.

end to end

If things are end to end, they are all facing in the same direction, with the back end of each against the front end of the next one:

The new cars were lined up end to end.

end noun [C] (PART)

a specific part or division of an activity:

She takes care of the financial end of the business and I handle the marketing end.

end noun [C] (INTENTION)

something that your actions or efforts are intended to achieve; an aim:

To accomplish that end, you will have to work hard and be lucky, too.

end noun [C] (FOOTBALL PLAYER)

(in football) one of two players who begin play farthest from the ball:

a defensive end

endlessly

adverb [ not gradable ] us

/ˈen·dlə·sli/

Education policy is endlessly debated.

Idioms

at the end of your rope
in the end
not the end of the world
on end

end

verb [ I/T ]

/end/

end verb [I/T] (FINISH)

to finish or stop, or to make something finish or stop:

[ I ] Our arguments always end in tears.

[ T ] She ended her speech on an optimistic note.

Phrasal verb

end up

(Definition of end from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

end | Business English

end

noun [ C ]

/end/ us

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the time or place that something finishes:

The construction will be completed by the end of the year.

Sales are looking good according to the end-of-month report.

We spent a long time looking for a good supplier, but we found one in the end.

There are encouraging signs that the recession has come to an end.

The difficult period we've been through now seems to be at an end.

There is no end to the possible markets for this product.

The meeting room is at the end of the corridor on the right.

used when stating whether goods or services are expensive or cheap, or of high or low quality:

the bottom/low/top end of the market This basic laptop is aimed at the low end of the market.

an aim or purpose:

We aim to halve production costs, and to this end we are investing in automating the process.

We see good design not just as a means of increasing profits, but as an end in itself.

the parts of a task or process connected with one particular type of activity, or with a particular person:

Rick's more involved with the financial end of things.

Everything's ready here, but how are thing's your end?

sb's end of the bargain/deal We kept our end of the bargain, but they failed to meet their deadline.

Examples of end

end

But this senior group is hoping their growth and that of the program isn't finished when the year ends.

From New York Post

Suddenly nothing is the end of the world.

From Plain Dealer

He ended up in hospitals for nearly eight months.

From Washington Post

The ground crew are all jockin at the other end of the uplink.

From Phys.Org

The mission ends in catastrophic failure and the loss of the vehicle.

From TechCrunch

Only to end up having higher poll numbers.

From Business Insider

The hunting does not end and the numbers don't lie.

From cleveland.com

An impeachment trial that could last six months would follow and end in a final vote.

From The Atlantic

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.