terminus

[tur-muh-nuh s]

noun, plural ter·mi·ni

[tur-muh-nahy] /ˈtɜr məˌnaɪ/, ter·mi·nus·es.

the end or extremity of anything.
either end of a railroad line.
British. the station or the town at the end of a railway or bus route.

the point toward which anything tends; goal or end.
a boundary or limit.
a boundary post or stone.
(initial capital letter) the ancient Roman god of boundaries and landmarks.
term(def 10).

Origin of terminus

1545–55; < Latin: boundary, limit, end

Can be confusedterminal terminus

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

Related Words for termini

consummation, desuetude, period, ending, cease, fulfillment, close, cessation, payoff, culmination, retirement, discontinuance, realization, curtain, issue, conclusion, completion, finish, finale, stop

Examples from the Web for termini

Contemporary Examples of termini

New Jersey Transit has also been affected, with major stations and termini along the coast flooded and unusable.
How Long Until New York Gets Back Up and Running?
Megan McArdle
October 30, 2012

Historical Examples of termini

They are not strictly speaking ends or termini of action at all.
Human Nature and Conduct
John Dewey
Both of these have their termini at Sealdah, an eastern suburb of Calcutta.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 5
Various
With the detectives on duty at the London termini reinforced and on strict watch, her chances of doing so were very slim.
The Grell Mystery
Frank Froest
Small places will also spring up at the mouth of the Wenatchie and the Okinagane, and at the termini of the steamboat landings.
A Report on Washington Territory
William Henry Ruffner
These termini, for the practical and the philosophical stages of thought respectively, are self-supporting.
Essays in Radical Empiricism
William James

British Dictionary definitions for termini

Terminus

noun

the Roman god of boundaries

terminus

noun plural -ni (-naɪ) or -nuses

the last or final part or point
either end of a railway, bus route, etc, or a station or town at such a point
a goal aimed for
a boundary or boundary marker
architect another name for term (def. 10)

Word Origin for terminus

C16: from Latin: end; related to Greek termōn boundary

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 termini

terminus

1550s, "goal, end, final point," from Latin terminus (plural termini) "end, boundary line," from PIE root *ter-, base of words meaning "peg, post, boundary, marker goal" (cf. Sanskrit tarati "passes over, crosses over," Hittite tarmaizzi "he limits," Greek terma "boundary, end, limit"). In ancient Rome, Terminus was the name of the deity who presided over boundaries and landmarks, focus of the important Roman festival of Terminalia (held Feb. 23, the end of the old Roman year). Meaning "either end of a transportation line" is first recorded 1836.