Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

cease

American  
[sees] / sis /

verb (used without object)

ceased, ceasing

  1. to stop; discontinue.

    Not all medieval beliefs have ceased to exist.
    Antonyms:
    begin

  2. to come to an end.

    At last the war has ceased.
    Synonyms:
    culminate, end, terminate
    Antonyms:
    begin

  3. Obsolete. to pass away; die out.

verb (used with object)

ceased, ceasing

  1. to put a stop or end to; discontinue.

    He begged them to cease their quarreling.

noun

  1. cessation.

    The noise of the drilling went on for hours without cease.

idioms

  1. never cease to amaze. never cease to amaze.

cease British  
/ siːs /

verb

  1. to bring or come to an end; desist from; stop

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. without stopping; incessantly

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
cease More Idioms  

    More idioms and phrases containing cease

Etymology

Origin of cease

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English ces(s)en, from Old French cesser, from Latin cessāre “to leave off,” equivalent to cess(us) (past participle of cēdere “to withdraw, go”; cede

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.

If successfully impeached, Jeri would cease to exercise his functions and be replaced by a new interim president.

From Barron's

Just over a year later, the Soviet Union ceased to exist.

From The Wall Street Journal

If you position that as your true purpose, a man’s failure to live up to your expectations will cease to debilitate you.

From Los Angeles Times

Many of the clips are based on real actors, TV shows and films, and major US studios have now demanded that it must "immediately cease" infringing copyright.

From BBC

But it also holds the archives from the 1960s and 70s of Belgian companies that ceased operations in the former colony, including geological maps.

From Barron's

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.