terminate
Americanverb (used with object)
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terminates,
present (3rd person singular)
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terminated,
past participle, past
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terminating
present participle
-
to bring to an end; put an end to.
to terminate a contract.
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to occur at or form the conclusion of.
The countess's soliloquy terminates the play.
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to bound or limit spatially; form or be situated at the extremity of.
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to dismiss from a job; fire.
to terminate employees during a recession.
verb (used without object)
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terminates,
present (3rd person singular)
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terminated,
past participle, past
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terminating
present participle
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to end, conclude, or cease.
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(of a train, bus, or other public conveyance) to end a scheduled run at a certain place.
This train terminates in New York.
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to come to an end (often followed by at, in, orwith ).
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to issue or result (usually followed byin ).
verb
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to form, be, or put an end (to); conclude
to terminate a pregnancy
their relationship terminated amicably
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(tr) to connect (suitable circuitry) to the end of an electrical transmission line to absorb the energy and avoid reflections
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(intr) maths (of a decimal expansion) to have only a finite number of digits
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slang (tr) to kill (someone)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonterminativeadjective
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self-terminatingadjective
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self-terminativeadjective
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terminativeadjective
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terminatoryadjective
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unterminatedadjective
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unterminatingadjective
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unterminativeadjective
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nonterminativelyadverb
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terminativelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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terminatesimple
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terminatessimple
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have terminatedperfect
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has terminatedperfect
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am terminatingprogressive
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are terminatingprogressive
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is terminatingprogressive
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have been terminatingperfect progressive
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has been terminatingperfect progressive
Past
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terminatedsimple
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had terminatedperfect
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was terminatingprogressive
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were terminatingprogressive
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had been terminatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of terminate
1580–90; verbal use of late Middle English terminate (adjective) “limited,” from Latin terminātus, past participle of termināre. See term, -ate 1
Explanation
To terminate something is to bring it to an end. Period. Full stop. In ancient Rome, Terminus was the God of landmarks, boundaries, and endings. That’s why his annual party took place at the end of the year. You can imagine the guests walking around in their togas, going, “This party is so great, I wish it would never terminate.” Nowadays, terminate can be used to refer to bringing anything to an end — including one's job or a product line: "When the Weird Food Company announces plans to terminate production of its deep-fried chocolate-covered pickle line, it will be a sad day for lovers of strange snacks."
Vocabulary lists containing terminate
Unit 1: Telling Details
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"The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving
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The Monroe Doctrine (1823)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
She said, come Friday afternoon, she would have to terminate the staff working on the program that they’d spent 20 years developing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
“You may incur substantial fees if you terminate your lease before the end of your initial lease term,” Apple said in its press release.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Under the proposal, “covered” companies would be required to maintain technical capabilities to stop a model’s operations, terminate user access, suspend accounts or uses deemed risky, and fully shut down the system.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Commitment to terminate its stake in European distribution venture with Universal Pictures eased regulators’ concerns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
That man knew how hard the other armed forces had tried to terminate the Marines Corps, even while we did the hardest jobs on those islands.
From "Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two" by Joseph Bruchac
The risks include the possibility of deportation, or that an employer terminates a worker after discovering they don’t have valid work authorization.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
It terminates when he turns 80 — or at least the cost increases astronomically at that point; I can’t remember which.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026
A potential tenant terminates an agreement to advance up to $150 million for construction costs at Fermi’s Project Matador.
From Barron's ● Dec. 12, 2025
Due to planned rail works, the cross border route to Dublin terminates at Drogheda with a bus replacement taking passengers the rest of the journey.
From BBC ● Jan. 26, 2025
The route terminates at the city’s southeast border, close to Richard’s house.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
Unable to find someone to cover her shift, she said her part-time job in a sandwich shop was terminated.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
The suit also claims Said was wrongfully terminated from ABC News in 2025 after dealing with mental health issues.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
However, the contract was never terminated and thus no savings were achieved, according to the congressional watchdog's report.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
His employment contract didn’t spell out what he would be owed if he were terminated, according to the suit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
Once everyone was back in their cells, he terminated rec in the gym and the yard for good measure.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
Arokodare's actions led to new boss Cesar Peixoto terminating the session on Monday.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
According to Trauben, Rancho Humilde and Fuerza Regida, both parties entered a completely new agreement in 2022 that fundamentally restructured their entire business relationship, fully terminating the initial 2018 contract in place.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
In focusing on elective abortion procedures, the court didn’t address all procedures for terminating a pregnancy.
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
The agreement, which includes terminating military operations, will be signed Friday, with nuclear talks continuing for 60 days.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
With a second equivocal report in hand, Bush was on the verge of terminating fission research altogether as a war program.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
