ENGLISH
REFERENCE

close in on

idiom
Meaning

To enclose around; to tighten or shrink; to collapse.


Examples
SIMPLE

The dark clouds close in on the small town.

CONTEXTUAL

As the police cars close in on the suspect, he realizes he has nowhere left to run.

COMPLEX

The walls of the narrow valley seemed to close in on the weary travelers as the sun dipped below the jagged horizon.

Anchors to
Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    close enough for government work

    Adequate; acceptable as government work, imperfect but not worth the time nor effort of improving.

  2. 02

    close on the heels of

    Near in time or place; very close.

  3. 03

    close one eye

    to look the other way, to deliberately ignore or overlook (a mistake or transgression).

  4. 04

    close one's eyes

    To ignore something.

  5. 05

    close one's mind

    To refuse to understand things.

  6. 06

    close season

    A situation or period in which some activity is forbidden or discontinued.

  7. 07

    close the book on

    To stop worrying about or trying to do something about; to ignore.

  8. 08

    close the books

    To finalize the financial records for a specific accounting period; to cease trading.

© 2026 English Reference