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end

n. · v.
US //ˈɛnd// UK //ˈɛnd// end
  1. 1 final part of time or space (n.)
    A1 Beginner

    the last part of something, such as a period of time, an event, or a physical object.

    the terminal point of something in space or time; the final part of a duration or a physical extremity.

    Example

    We stayed until the very end of the movie to see the extra scene.

    Example

    By the end of the fiscal year, the company had successfully restructured its debt and regained investor confidence.
  2. 2 a goal or purpose (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Formal

    the reason why you do something; a goal or aim.

    a purpose, goal, or intended result of an action.

    Example

    He used his wealth as a means to an end to help the local community.

    Example

    The diplomat argued that the ends did not justify the means, insisting on ethical transparency throughout the negotiations.
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  1. 3 money (n.)
    C1 Advanced Slang

    a slang word for money.

    a slang term referring to financial gain or accumulated money.

    Example

    He's just trying to make some ends so he can pay his rent.

    Example

    In many urban lyrics, the pursuit of ends is depicted as a primary motivator for characters navigating the gig economy.
  2. 4 graph theory (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Technical Math

    a special point in a mathematical graph.

    an ideal point of a graph or other complex structure representing a direction in which the graph extends to infinity.

    Example

    The professor explained how to identify an end in an infinite graph.

    Example

    The study of ends in infinite graphs allows mathematicians to classify the structural properties of groups acting on those graphs.

  3. 5 to finish (v.)
    A1 Beginner

    to stop or finish something.

    to bring something to a conclusion or to reach a terminal point.

    Example

    The concert ended with a beautiful piano solo.

    Example

    The treaty effectively ended the border dispute that had plagued the two nations for over a decade.
Origin

From Middle English ende, from Old English ende, from Proto-West Germanic andī, from Proto-Germanic andijaz (“end”), from Proto-Indo-European h₂entíos (“forehead; front”), from h₂ent- (“face; forehead; front”), from *h₂en- (“on, onto”). Cognates Cognate with Yola een, eene (“end”), Saterland Frisian Eend, Eende (“end”), West Frisian ein (“end”), Alemannic German End, Endi (“end”), Central Franconian Eng, Enk (“end”), Cimbrian énte (“end”), Dutch eind, einde, end (“end”), German Ende (“end”), Luxembourgish Enn (“end”), Vilamovian end, ent (“end”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk ende (“end”), Faroese endi (“end”), Icelandic endi, endir (“end”), Swedish ända, ände (“end”), Gothic 𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌴𐌹𐍃 (andeis, “end”); also Irish éadan (“end; front”), Manx eddin (“face; front”), Scottish Gaelic aodann (“face; hillside”), Latin antiae (“forelock”), Ancient Greek ἀντίος (antíos, “opposite”), Albanian anë (“brink; edge; facet; side”), Latvian no (“for; from”), Lithuanian nuo (“for; from”), Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, and Ukrainian на (na, “on”), Czech, Kashubian, Lower Sorbian, Polish, Slovak, and Slovene na (“on”), Serbo-Croatian на, na (“on”), Old Armenian ընդ (ənd, “in the place, instead of”), Old Persian 𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎹 (abiy, “against; towards; upon”), Tocharian A ānt (“in front”), Tocharian B ānte (“in front of”), Sanskrit अन्त (anta, “boundary; border, edge; end, termination”). More at and and anti-. The verb is from Middle English enden, endien, from Old English endian (“to end, to make an end of, complete, finish, abolish, destroy, come to an end, die”), from Proto-Germanic andijōną (“to finish, end”), denominative from andijaz.

Word family
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