shutdown

American  

[shuht-doun] / ˈʃʌtˌdaʊn /

noun

1. a shutting down, as of a factory, school, or machine; a termination or suspension of operations, services, or business activity.

   a partial government shutdown;

   an emergency shutdown of a nuclear reactor.

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shutdown British  

/ ˈʃʌtˌdaʊn /

noun

1. 1. the closing of a factory, shop, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      shutdown costs

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verb

1. to cease or cause to cease operation

2. (tr) to close by lowering

3. (tr) (of fog) to descend and envelop

4. informal (intr; foll by on or upon) to put a stop to; clamp down on

5. (tr) to reduce the power level of (a nuclear reactor) to the lowest possible value

Etymology

Origin of shutdown

1855–60, noun use of verb phrase shut down

Example Sentences

Indexes surrendered small gains that came after the January jobs report, briefly delayed by the government shutdown, showed the economy added 130,000 positions last month, more than double expectations.

From The Wall Street Journal

For now, the government data -- which were slightly delayed by last week's federal shutdown -- suggest the labor market is showing more underlying resilience than anticipated.

From Barron's

Another issue might be tied to the composition of the January report, which was delayed by data collection issues tied to last year’s government shutdown.

From Barron's

These revisions have been pushed back to the February employment report, however, because last fall’s government shutdown delayed the Census’ annual release of population estimates.

From The Wall Street Journal

A prolonged government shutdown last fall interrupted data releases much more significantly, complicating efforts to gauge the labor market’s underlying strength.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• closedown
• closure
• stoppage