termination

Noun

termination (countable and uncountable, plural terminations)

1. The process of terminating or the state of being terminated.
   • At all terminal stations, where running speeds are low, fixed termination simple catenary equipment has been installed.1959 June, “Clacton and Walton Electrification”, in Railway Magazine, page 379

   Synonyms:

   discontinuation, stoppage

   Antonyms:

   continuation

2. The process of firing an employee; ending one's employment at a business for any reason.

   Synonyms:

   discharge, dismissal

3. An end in time; a conclusion.

   Synonyms:

   close, conclusion, end, finale, finish, stop

4. An end in space; an edge or limit.

   Synonyms:

   border, edge, end, limit, lip, rim, tip

5. An outcome or result.
   • Long indeed did that morning appear to Francesca—the longer as her anxiety was unexpressed; for it certainly does shorten a period of waiting not a little to spend it in talking over its various probabilities of termination, wondering what will happen, while we are consoled by the strong sympathy...1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XIV, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 111

   Synonyms:

   consequence, outcome, result, upshot

6. The last part of a word.
   • 1. Some adjectives of the third declension have three terminations in the nominative singular,—one for each gender; some two,—one for the masculine and feminine, the other for the neuter; and some, only one for all genders.
     1. Verbs whose terminations are alike, are said to be of the same...1849, E. A. Andrews, A First Latin Book; Or Progressive Lessons in Reading and Writing Latin, 2nd edition, Boston, page 52 & 69
   • Women's names were formed in the same way as men's, but with feminine terminations […]1945, E[lizabeth] G[idley] Withycombe, “Introduction”, in The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page xiii

   Synonyms:

   ending, desinence

7. An induced abortion.

   Synonyms:

   abortion, induced abortion

8. (obsolete, rare) A word, a term.
   • She speaks poniards, and every word stabs: if her breath were as terrible as her terminations, there were no living near her; she would infect to the north star.1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward]...
   • [O]n this idea, in naming the bases of potash and soda, it will be proper to adopt the termination which, by common consent, has been applied to other newly discovered metals... Potasium and sodium are the names...1808, Humphry Davy, The Bakerian Lecture, on some new Phenomena of chemical Changes produced by Electricity, particularly the Decomposition of the fixed Alkalis, and on the Exhibition of the new...
9. The ending up of a polypeptid chain.