closure

American  

[kloh-zher] / ˈkloʊ ʒər /

noun

• closures
  plural

1. the act of closing; the state of being closed.

2. a bringing to an end; conclusion.

3. something that closes or shuts.

4. closer.

5. an architectural screen or parapet, especially one standing free between columns or piers.

6. Phonetics. an occlusion of the vocal tract as an articulatory feature of a particular speech sound.

7. Parliamentary Procedure. a cloture.

8. Surveying. completion of a closed traverse in such a way that the point of origin and the endpoint coincide within an acceptably small margin of error.

9. Mathematics.

   1. the property of being closed with respect to a particular operation.

   2. the intersection of all closed sets that contain a given set.

10. Psychology.

    1. the tendency to see an entire figure even though the picture of it is incomplete, based primarily on the viewer's past experience.

    2. a sense of psychological certainty or completeness.

       a need for closure.

11. Obsolete. something that encloses or shuts in; enclosure.

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verb (used with or without object)

closured, closuring

1. Parliamentary Procedure. to cloture.

closure British  

/ ˈkləʊʒə /

noun

1. the act of closing or the state of being closed

2. an end or conclusion

3. something that closes or shuts, such as a cap or seal for a container

4. (in a deliberative body) a procedure by which debate may be halted and an immediate vote taken See also cloture guillotine gag rule

5. 1. the resolution of a significant event or relationship in a person's life

   2. a sense of contentment experienced after such a resolution

6. geology the vertical distance between the crest of an anticline and the lowest contour that surrounds it

7. phonetics the obstruction of the breath stream at some point along the vocal tract, such as the complete occlusion preliminary to the articulation of a stop

8. logic

   1. the closed sentence formed from a given open sentence by prefixing universal or existential quantifiers to bind all its free variables

   2. the process of forming such a closed sentence

9. maths

   1. the smallest closed set containing a given set

   2. the operation of forming such a set

10. psychol the tendency, first noted by Gestalt psychologists, to see an incomplete figure like a circle with a gap in it as more complete than it is

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verb

1. (tr) (in a deliberative body) to end (debate) by closure

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonclosure
  noun
• preclosure
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• closures
  plural

Etymology

Origin of closure

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French < Latin clausūra. See close, -ure

Explanation

Closure is the end or the closing down of something. It can be physical — like the closure of your local library — or emotional, like the closure you experience when you finally come to terms with the end of a romance. Closure comes from the Latin claus ("shut"), and it has many different shades of meaning. A road closure blocks that road from traffic. If you find closure after an emotional hardship, you're ready to move on. An obstruction in a small passage, like a pipe, is also a closure, as is the button on your sweater. In debate, closure (usually cloture), stops debate and starts the vote.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

closure closures closured

Starbucks did not respond to a request to confirm the closure of these locations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most important energy corridors, and its closure during the war has disrupted global oil shipments and contributed to higher energy prices.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026

CEO Yuvraj Narayan scrambles to build alternative supply routes around Port of Jebel Ali with Hormuz closure cutting profits by $90 million a month.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

“For the last three years, a permitted block closure in the center of our general footprint turns into a fun street party with three musical stages,” said Gould, a co-organizer.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

With the closure of the port, most of the College’s income was stopped up and its investments nullified; and so to anxiety was added penury.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson

Quixote has also closed its production services operation in Atlanta, following earlier closures in New Orleans and Albuquerque.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

The flood of negative reviews of the fast-food chain, coupled with widespread closures of its restaurants, led Slate to ask in April “What the Hell Happened to Wendy’s?”

From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026

Starbucks said it would incur roughly $300 million in restructuring charges as a result of the closures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

The wildfires have led to school closures and a surge in hospital admissions across Indonesia.

From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026

Voxy straightens his suit and checks its closures.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Theatres are facing lower sales from the cost-of-living crisis only a year after most re-opened following closured prompted by Covid lockdowns.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2022

The qualifying adjective 'good' is dangerous, and before the time for the bill was half expired, Bozzy has closured it and the amendment.

From James Boswell Famous Scots Series by W. Keith (William Keith) Leask

"I've never met him," he answered, and closured my next question by jumping up and helping Mrs. Wylton out of the taxi.

From The Sixth Sense A Novel by Stephen McKenna

After another fight, the Government closured through an Appropriation Bill covering Supply for ten weeks, and the House was dissolved on 31st August, the election being fixed for 2nd October.

From Our First Half-Century: A Review of Queensland Progress Based Upon Official Information by Queensland

Christian's response was closured by a wild outcry from the wood, hounds and horn lifting up their voices together in sudden delirium.

From Mount Music by Martin Ross

Related Words

• closing
• stoppage
• termination