enclose
Americanverb (used with object)
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to shut or hem in; close in on all sides.
a valley enclosed by tall mountains.
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to surround, as with a fence or wall.
to enclose land.
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to insert in the same envelope, package, or the like.
He enclosed a check.
A book was sent with the bill enclosed.
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to hold or contain.
His letter enclosed a check.
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Roman Catholic Church.
verb
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to close; hem in; surround
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to surround (land) with or as if with a fence
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to put in an envelope or wrapper, esp together with a letter
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to contain or hold
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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enclosableadjective
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reencloseverb (used with object)
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enclosernoun
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preencloseverb (used with object)
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have enclosedperfect
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has enclosedperfect 3rd person singular
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has been enclosingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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are enclosingprogressive
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have been enclosingperfect progressive
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is enclosingprogressive 3rd person singular
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am enclosingprogressive 1st person singular
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enclosingparticiple
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enclosessingular 3rd person
Past
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had enclosedperfect
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was enclosingprogressive singular
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were enclosingprogressive plural
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had been enclosingperfect progressive
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enclosedsimple
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enclosedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of enclose
First recorded in 1275–1325, enclose is from the Middle English word enclosen, inclosen. See in- 1, close
Explanation
To enclose something is to surround it or cover it up. An envelope encloses a letter. To enclose is to put something inside something else. A crowd of people could enclose a celebrity, or a wall might enclose a garden. In Edgar Allan Poe’s story “Masque of the Red Death,” the Prince encloses his party guests inside the castle walls (along with the Red Death). (Oops!) A box might enclose a present. If you enclose something with a letter, you’re putting it in the envelope, too.
Vocabulary lists containing enclose
Case Closed: Clud, Clus
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act V
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Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
