bookend

[book-end]

noun

1. a support placed at the end of a row of books to hold them upright, usually used in pairs.

2. one of two things occurring or located at either end of something else.

   two events that served as bookends to my career.

verb (used with object)

1. to occur or be located at the beginning and end of.

   His term in office was bookended by crises.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bookend¹

First recorded in 1905–10; book + end ¹

Example Sentences

“Better Broken” is a bookend to that moment, coming out right as her children are emptying the nest.

From Los Angeles Times

Athletics' return to Tokyo means, fittingly, that the event in the Japanese capital bookends a five-year run of major championships - a situation caused by the pandemic and subsequent postponements.

From BBC

The original vision was Slater at left tackle and Alt at right, a pair of brick-wall bookends, for years to come.

From Los Angeles Times

Recognizing this undercurrent explains why Knox’s confrontation with the seemingly merciless Giuliano Mignini, the prosecutor who did everything in his power to deprive her of her freedom, bookends “The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox.”

From Salon

For L.A. fans, these shows were one last chance to reconnect with Simon, who now had a profound late-career album to bookend his catalog.

From Los Angeles Times