near, as to a common center; adjacent, especially to a city.
The city is enveloping its close-in suburbs.
occurring or provided at close quarters.
Fighter planes provided daring close-in air support.
(of days) to become shorter with the approach of winter
to advance (on) so as to encircle or surround
Surround, enclose, envelop, as in The fog closed in and we couldn't see two yards in front of us , or She felt the room was closing in . [c. 1400]
Also, . Draw in, approach, as in The police closed in on the suspect . [Early 1800s]
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
To mitigate the impact of increased fuel prices due to the conflict in Iran, JetBlue said it reduced second-quarter capacity by nearly 1 percentage point versus close-in expectations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
“As always we expect a conservative initial view from Carnival with close-in demand and onboard spending being swing factors on how the quarter unfolds,” he added.
From Barron's ● Dec. 18, 2025
“Down goes Moorer on a right hand!. An unbelievably close-in right-hand shot! “It happened!
From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2025
But downtown and close-in neighborhoods that thrived before the pandemic are stagnating.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 23, 2024
Then she found Myers Park, a prosperous, close-in community of 8,700 where most of the houses are more than sixty years old and ten minutes from downtown.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
Leeds went close in added time through Wilson but his shot went over.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
The merger had been expected to close in mid-2026, but Trump Media said last month that it will happen “in the fourth quarter of 2026 or sooner.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026
The acquisition is expected to close in the coming weeks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
The deal, expected to close in the second half of 2026, is subject to regulatory approvals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
“It’s almost,” Dad continued thoughtfully, “like you’re triplets. Think of it: you’ll be in college together, get married at around the same time, and maybe your kids will be close in age.”
From "Liar, Liar" by Gary Paulsen
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.
