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conclusion

[kuh n-kloo-zhuh n]
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noun
  1. the end or close; final part.
  2. the last main division of a discourse, usually containing a summing up of the points and a statement of opinion or decisions reached.
  3. a result, issue, or outcome; settlement or arrangement: The restitution payment was one of the conclusions of the negotiations.
  4. final decision: The judge has reached his conclusion.
  5. a reasoned deduction or inference.
  6. Logic. a proposition concluded or inferred from the premises of an argument.
  7. Law.
    1. the effect of an act by which the person performing the act is bound not to do anything inconsistent therewith; an estoppel.
    2. the end of a pleading or conveyance.
  8. Grammar. apodosis.
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Idioms
  1. in conclusion, finally: In conclusion, I would like to thank you for your attention.
  2. try conclusions with, to engage oneself in a struggle for victory or mastery over, as a person or an impediment.
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Origin of conclusion

1300–50; Middle English < Latin conclūsiōn- (stem of conclūsiō), equivalent to conclūs(us) closed, past participle of conclūdere (conclūd- to conclude + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn- -ion
Related formscon·clu·sion·al, adjectivecon·clu·sion·al·ly, adverbnon·con·clu·sion, nounpre·con·clu·sion, noun

Synonyms

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1. ending, termination, completion, finale. 2. summation.

Synonym study

1. See end1.

Antonyms

1. beginning.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for conclusion

conclusion

noun
  1. end or termination
  2. the last main division of a speech, lecture, essay, etc
  3. the outcome or result of an act, process, event, etc (esp in the phrase a foregone conclusion)
  4. a final decision or judgment; resolution (esp in the phrase come to a conclusion)
  5. logic
    1. a statement that purports to follow from another or others (the premises) by means of an argument
    2. a statement that does validly follow from given premises
  6. law
    1. an admission or statement binding on the party making it; estoppel
    2. the close of a pleading or of a conveyance
  7. in conclusion lastly; to sum up
  8. jump to conclusions to come to a conclusion prematurely, without sufficient thought or on incomplete evidence
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Word Origin

C14: via Old French from Latin; see conclude, -ion
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

Word Origin and History for conclusion

n.

late 14c., "deduction or conclusion reached by reasoning," from Old French conclusion "conclusion, result, outcome," from Latin conclusionem (nominative conclusio), noun of action from past participle stem of concludere (see conclude). Also, from late 14c. "the end" (usually of speech or writing), "closing passages of a speech or writing."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with conclusion

conclusion

see foregone conclusion; jump to a conclusion.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.