conclude

American  

[kuhn-klood] / kənˈklud /

verb (used with object)

• concludes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• concluded,
  past participle,  past
• concluding
  present participle

1. to bring to an end; finish; terminate.

   to conclude a speech with a quotation from the Bible.

2. to say in conclusion.

   At the end of the speech he concluded that we had been a fine audience.

3. to bring to a decision or settlement; settle or arrange finally.

   to conclude a treaty.

4. to determine by reasoning; deduce; infer.

   They studied the document and concluded that the author must have been an eyewitness.

5. to decide, determine, or resolve.

   He concluded that he would go no matter what the weather.

6. Obsolete.

   1. to shut up or enclose.

   2. to restrict or confine.

---

verb (used without object)

• concludes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• concluded,
  past participle,  past
• concluding
  present participle

1. to come to an end; finish.

   The meeting concluded at ten o'clock.

2. to arrive at an opinion or judgment; come to a decision; decide.

   The jury concluded to set the accused free.

conclude British  

/ kənˈkluːd /

verb

1. (also intr) to come or cause to come to an end or conclusion

2. (takes a clause as object) to decide by reasoning; deduce

   the judge concluded that the witness had told the truth

3. to arrange finally; settle

   to conclude a treaty

   it was concluded that he should go

4. obsolete to confine

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• concluder
  noun
• preconclude
  verb (used with object)
• concludable
  adjective
• concludible
  adjective
• nonconcluding
  adjective
• unconcludable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• concluding
  present
• concluded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• conclude
  simple
• concludes
  simple
• have concluded
  perfect
• has concluded
  perfect
• am concluding
  progressive
• are concluding
  progressive
• is concluding
  progressive
• have been concluding
  perfect progressive
• has been concluding
  perfect progressive

Past

• concluded
  simple
• had concluded
  perfect
• was concluding
  progressive
• were concluding
  progressive
• had been concluding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will conclude
  simple
• will have concluded
  perfect
• will be concluding
  progressive
• will have been concluding
  perfect progressive

---

Etymology

Origin of conclude

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Latin conclūdere “to close, end an argument,” equivalent to con- con- + -clūdere, combining form of claudere “to close ”

---

Explanation

The verb conclude means two related things: coming to a decision, and bringing to a close. Conclude is related to the word close, which is related to an old Latin word for "barrier" or "bolt" — the kind you put on a door. When you conclude something, it's as though you're pulling a door shut and bolting it. If your girlfriend concludes an argument by leaving the room and slamming the door, you can conclude that she's angry at you.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

conclude concludes concluded concluding

“I don’t know how you could look at this report and conclude that we’re entering anything like a white-collar job apocalypse,” said Harvard economist David Deming.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 7, 2026

It is also possible that senators will conclude that it is simply too difficult to draw lines between reliable and dangerous nominees.

From Slate ● Nov. 5, 2026

Officials said the timeframe for the talks would be agreed at a later date, though the Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has suggested they are likely to conclude in around a year.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

Construction is scheduled to begin next year and conclude in 2034.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

They combed every inch of the room for more than an hour, but were forced, finally, to conclude that the locket was not there.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

"Our work suggests that simple cellular interactions can generate the remarkable diversity of tissue architectures observed throughout evolution," concludes Athanasia Tzika.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 11, 2026

"Because the court concludes that there was manifest necessity for a mistrial based on the jury's deadlock, a retrial on the murder indictments does not violate Clancy's right not to be placed in double jeopardy."

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026

Marks concludes by quoting the late Peter Bernstein: “Forecasts create the mirage that the future is knowable.”

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026

“The court thus concludes the subpoena concerns a matter which is material and relevant to the enforcement of the federal immigration laws,” he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026

When news of the discovery of the abandoned riding boot makes its way back to Washington, Baker concludes that Booth cannot be traveling on horseback.

From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly

This was, the court ultimately concluded, unheard of.

From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2026

The probe follows reports that the U.S. government concluded Alice Huang, who was in a romantic relationship with the Nvidia CEO, was likely sending information to Chinese intelligence.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 10, 2026

U.S. officials last year concluded that Alice Huang was sharing information with the Chinese government while working with Nvidia to build data centers in Asia, the Journal earlier reported.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026

The inquiry's first report, published this summer, concluded that once-in-a-generation reforms were needed to fix a system "not serving the interests of white working-class children".

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026

He never saw it, and concluded that it must have gone away, if it hadn’t died during the deadly cold months.

From "Abel's Island" by William Steig

A former salesperson for aircraft maintenance company BizJet International pleaded guilty to bribing foreign officials in Mexico and elsewhere in Latin America, concluding a long-running bribery case first indicted in 2012.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

India's foreign ministry also said both sides welcomed progress in trade negotiations and reaffirmed their commitment to concluding a deal, which has long been in the works.

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

“School districts across the country have overhauled admissions criteria for competitive public schools after concluding that existing systems produced undesirable racial enrollment patterns,” they said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026

Discounts and low-rate financing can attract buyers, but they also cut into that profit, so investors need to know what they cost before concluding that demand will last.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

So for the perplexed audiences who first heard it in 1804 and 1805, even the funeral march is denied its thundering climax, collapsing rather than concluding.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• accomplish
• achieve
• carry out
• confirm
• decide
• determine
• establish
• rule
• work out

---