close
to put (something) in a position to obstruct an entrance, opening, etc.; shut: Close the door, it's freezing in here.
to stop or obstruct (a gap, entrance, aperture, etc.): If you close that hole in the foundation, you're less likely to get critters in the basement.
to block or hinder passage across or access to: Because people were littering, the Parks and Recreation department decided to close the woods to picnickers.
to stop or obstruct the entrances, apertures, or gaps in: He closed the crate to prevent anything falling out and tied it up.
to make (one's mind) unreceptive or inaccessible to: Don't close your mind to an opinion just because you don't like the person who expressed it.
to bring together the parts of; join; unite (often followed by up): Close up those ranks!The surgeon closed the incision.
Electricity. to complete (an electrical circuit) by joining the circuit elements: The circuit was closed so the current could be measured.
to bring to an end: The chair then closed the debate and announced that the decision would be given in writing.
to arrange the final details of; to conclude negotiations about; complete or settle: Your sales team also needs to understand their audience properly to be able to close a deal to everyone's satisfaction.We close the sale of the house next week.
to stop rendering the customary services of: We close the store at 7 on weeknights.
to terminate or suspend the operation of; to halt the activities of: The epidemic forced authorities to close the schools.The police closed the bar for selling liquor to minors.
Nautical. to come near to: We closed the cruiser to put our injured captain on board.
Metalworking. to reduce the internal diameter of (a tube or the like).
Archaic. to shut in or surround on all sides; enclose; cover in: to close a bird in a cage.
to come near: His pursuers closed rapidly.
to grapple; engage in close encounter (often followed by with): We closed with the invaders shortly before sundown.
to come to an end; terminate: The service closed with a hymn.
to cease to offer the customary activities or services: The school closed for the summer.
to complete or reach an agreement, usually as a contract: The builder closed with the contractor after negotiations.They're closing on the lease for the office now, but we won't be ready to move for a few weeks.
(of a theatrical production) to cease to be performed: The play closed in New York yesterday and will open in Dallas next week.
(of a stock, group of stocks, etc.) to be priced or show a change in price as specified at the end of a trading period: The market closed low for the fourth straight day.
having the parts or elements near to one another: The close formation of battleships made it impossible to pass.
being in or having proximity in space or time: The barn is so close to the house that I can hear the animals from my bedroom.His birthday is in May, close to mine.
marked by similarity in degree, action, feeling, etc.: This dark pink is close to red.He left her close to tears.
near in kind or relationship: You should get screened regularly for breast cancer, especially if a close relative, such as a parent or sibling, has had it.
emotionally intimate or strongly united; dear: It's a rare blessing to have such a close circle of friends.My sister and I have always been very close—I tell her everything.
fitting tightly: She wore a close, clingy top paired with loose, flowing pants.
(of a haircut or shave, the mowing of a lawn, etc.) so executed that the hair, grass, etc., is left flush with the surface or very short: The mower delivers a smooth, close cut to leave your lawn looking great every time.
not deviating from a subject, a model, an original, etc.: The first volume is a close, literal translation, but the second volume strays farther from the source text.
nearly even or equal: It was a close contest, with both teams scoring goal after goal, but we won in the end.
strictly logical: The book is remarkable for its close reasoning and excellent use of academic sources.
shut; shut tight; not open: A close hatch is needed to keep the water out.
shut in; enclosed: I thought all the sheep were close, but my sister just saw one of the ewes on the hillside.
completely enclosing or surrounding: It was a close siege, preventing all escape.
without opening; with all openings covered or closed: For winter storage, make sure the entire boat is as close as it can possibly be.
lacking fresh or freely circulating air: a hot, close room.
heavy; oppressive: a spell of close, sultry weather.
parsimonious; stingy: He is very close with his money.
scarce, as money: Our funds are much too close right now to think about buying another car.
not open to public or general admission, competition, etc.: The entire parish participated in the close communication.
(of a delimiting punctuation mark) occurring at the end of a group of words or characters that is set off, as from surrounding text: close parentheses;close quotes;close brackets.: Compare open (def. 32).
Hunting, Angling. closed (def. 8).
Phonetics. (of a vowel) articulated with a relatively small opening between the tongue and the roof of the mouth.: Compare high (def. 23), open (def. 35a).
Heraldry. (of a bird) represented as having folded wings: an eagle close.
Archaic. viscous; not volatile.
in a close manner; closely.
near; close by.
Heraldry. immediately behind the ears, so as to show no neck: a bear's head couped close.
the act or fact of closing; the end or conclusion: At the close of day, we like to wind down with a cup of tea and a book.He seemed distracted during the close of the speech, and ran off the stage as soon as it was finished.
Music. cadence (def. 7).
Stock Exchange.
the closing price on a stock.
the closing prices on an exchange market.
Chiefly British. an enclosed place or enclosure, especially one beside or surrounding a cathedral or other building.
Chiefly British. a short street terminating in a dead end; cul-de-sac.
Chiefly Scot. an entry or passage, especially one between the street and the back entry of a building, to a common stairway, or to outbuildings, etc.
Archaic. a junction; union.
Obsolete. a close encounter; a grapple: The fighters met in a fierce close.
close down,
to terminate the operation of; discontinue: to close down an air base because of budget cuts.
to attempt to control or eliminate: The city must close down drug traffic.
close in on / upon
to approach so as to capture, attack, arrest, etc.: The hoodlums closed in on their victim.
to surround or envelop so as to entrap: a feeling that the room was closing in upon her.
close out,
to reduce the price of (merchandise) for quick sale: That store is closing out its stock of men's clothing.
to liquidate or dispose of finally and completely: They closed out their interests after many years in this city.
close up,
to come together in close array; converge: The enemy was closing up on us from both flanks.
to bring to an end; cease: The company is closing up its overseas operations.
to become silent or uncommunicative: I thought we were getting along, but she closed up all of a sudden and I don't know what's wrong.
Printing. to reduce or eliminate spacing material between (units of set type).
Idioms about close
close ranks, to unite forces, especially by overlooking petty differences, in order to deal with an adverse or challenging situation; to join together in a show of unity, especially to the public: When the newspaper story broke suggesting possible corruption in the government, the politicians all closed ranks.
close to the wind, Nautical. in a direction nearly opposite to that from which the wind is coming: to sail close to the wind.
close up,
from close range; in a detailed manner; intimately.
Nautical. fully raised; at the top of the halyard: an answering pennant flown close up.: Compare dip1 (def. 37).
close / seal the deal. See entry at seal the deal.
Origin of close
1synonym study For close
Other words for close
2 | bar; clog, choke |
8 | complete, end, conclude, terminate, finish |
20 | stop; suspend |
25 | firm, solid |
26 | immediate, proximate; nearby |
32 | intent, concentrated |
33 | exacting, accurate, faithful |
42 | muggy, sultry, humid |
43 | taciturn, uncommunicative, reserved |
44 | penurious, miserly, tight, mean |
Other words from close
- clos·a·ble, close·a·ble [kloh-zuh-buhl], /ˈkloʊ zə bəl/, adjective
- close·ly [klohs-lee], /ˈkloʊs li/, adverb
- close·ness [klohs-nis], /ˈkloʊs nɪs/, noun
- non·close, adjective
- non·close·ly, adverb
- o·ver·close, adjective
- o·ver·close·ly, adverb
- pre·close, verb (used with object), pre·closed, pre·clos·ing.
- un·clos·a·ble, adjective
Words that may be confused with close
Words Nearby close
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use close in a sentence
Those close to him believe he would be fine with having a vote on another package before they leave town, even if it’s smaller than the plan Pelosi wants.
Trump moves closer to Pelosi in economic aid talks, and House speaker must decide next move | Rachael Bade, Erica Werner | September 17, 2020 | Washington PostThe Bedminster club temporarily closed down operations on March 17, after Murphy imposed new restrictions on businesses and social gatherings because of the pandemic.
Trump’s businesses charged Secret Service more than $1.1 million, including for rooms in club shuttered for pandemic | David Fahrenthold, Josh Dawsey | September 17, 2020 | Washington PostThe results were closer among Republicans, 41 percent of whom said the theory didn’t hurt the country and 50 percent of whom said it did.
Trump contradicts CDC director on vaccine; Biden says Americans shouldn’t trust Trump | Colby Itkowitz, Felicia Sonmez, John Wagner | September 16, 2020 | Washington PostIf I didn’t close it, I think you’d have 2 million deaths instead of having the 185,000 — 190,000.
The problem with Trump’s ‘herd mentality’ line isn’t the verbal flub. It’s the mass death. | Philip Bump | September 16, 2020 | Washington PostAlong with the entire automaker sector, Honda’s business felt the hit from the coronavirus crisis early on as global lockdowns caused factories to close and kept consumers away from dealerships.
‘A credible voice’: Why Honda is doubling down on esports | Lara O'Reilly | September 16, 2020 | Digiday
Hopefully not overly close, but we talk about it in the episode how similar it is.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS | Marlow Stern | January 8, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTThe two strengthened ties over the years and now Krauss considers Epstein a “close” and “considerate” friend.
Sleazy Billionaire’s Double Life Featured Beach Parties With Stephen Hawking | M.L. Nestel | January 8, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTNey said McDonnell needs to “keep a stiff lip” and stay in close contact with family members.
Abramoff’s Advice for Virginia’s New Jailhouse Guv | Tim Mak, Jackie Kucinich | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTI got to work on all of it—and Epstein kept close tabs on me.
I Tried to Warn You About Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003 | Vicky Ward | January 7, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTSo in that sense we have gotten close to the families that have lost loved ones, be it from one side or the other.
Squinty could look out, but the slats were as close together as those in a chicken coop, and the little pig could not get out.
Squinty the Comical Pig | Richard BarnumOn the upper part of the stem the whorls are very close together, but they are more widely separated at the lower portion.
How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard BastinIt was close upon twelve o'clock, and the "Rooms" had been open to the public for two hours.
Rosemary in Search of a Father | C. N. WilliamsonIn the close relation and affection of these last days, the sense of alienation and antagonism faded from both their hearts.
Ramona | Helen Hunt JacksonHe passed the latter part of his life in poverty, and towards the close of it, was confined in a madhouse.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel Munsell
British Dictionary definitions for close (1 of 2)
/ (kləʊs) /
near in space or time; in proximity
having the parts near together; dense: a close formation
down or near to the surface; short: a close haircut
near in relationship: a close relative
intimate or confidential: a close friend
almost equal or even: a close contest
not deviating or varying greatly from a model or standard: a close resemblance; a close translation
careful, strict, or searching: a close study
(of a style of play in football, hockey, etc) characterized by short passes
confined or enclosed
shut or shut tight
oppressive, heavy, or airless: a close atmosphere
strictly guarded: a close prisoner
neat or tight in fit: a close cap
secretive or reticent
miserly; not generous, esp with money
(of money or credit) hard to obtain; scarce
restricted as to public admission or membership
hidden or secluded
Also: closed restricted or prohibited as to the type of game or fish able to be taken
Also: closed, narrow phonetics denoting a vowel pronounced with the lips relatively close together
closely; tightly
near or in proximity
close to the wind nautical sailing as nearly as possible towards the direction from which the wind is blowing: See also wind 1 (def. 26)
Origin of close
1Derived forms of close
- closely, adverb
- closeness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for close (2 of 2)
/ (kləʊz) /
to put or be put in such a position as to cover an opening; shut: the door closed behind him
(tr) to bar, obstruct, or fill up (an entrance, a hole, etc): to close a road
to bring the parts or edges of (a wound, etc) together or (of a wound, etc) to be brought together
(intr; foll by on, over, etc) to take hold: his hand closed over the money
to bring or be brought to an end; terminate
to complete (an agreement, a deal, etc) successfully or (of an agreement, deal, etc) to be completed successfully
to cease or cause to cease to render service: the shop closed at six
(intr) stock exchange to have a value at the end of a day's trading, as specified: steels closed two points down
to complete an electrical circuit
(tr) nautical to pass near
(tr) archaic to enclose or shut in
close one's eyes
euphemistic to die
(often foll by to) to ignore
the act of closing
the end or conclusion: the close of the day
a place of joining or meeting
(kləʊs) law private property, usually enclosed by a fence, hedge, or wall
(kləʊs) British a courtyard or quadrangle enclosed by buildings or an entry leading to such a courtyard
(kləʊs) British (capital when part of a street name) a small quiet residential road: Hillside Close
British a field
(kləʊs) the precincts of a cathedral or similar building
(kləʊs) Scot the entry from the street to a tenement building
music another word for cadence
archaic, or rare an encounter in battle; grapple
- See also close down, close in, close out, close-up, close with
Derived forms of close
- closer, noun
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with close
In addition to the idioms beginning with close
- close at hand
- close but no cigar
- close call
- closed book, a
- closed door
- close down
- close in
- close one's eyes to
- close out
- close ranks
- close shave
- close the books
- close the door on
- close the sale
- close to home
- close up
also see:
- at close quarters
- at close range
- behind closed doors
- keep (a close) watch
- near (close) to one's heart
- play one's cards close to one's chest
- sail close to the wind
- too close for comfort
- too close to call
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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