# termination

/tɝməˈneɪʃən/ (US) · /tˌɜːmɪnˈeɪʃən/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/termination
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. ending a process or agreement

noun · CEFR B2 · Formal

the act of ending something or the state of being finished.

For teachers: the act of bringing something to a conclusion or the state of being terminated; frequently used in legal and contractual contexts.

- The contract includes a clause for early termination if the work is not finished on time.
- The sudden termination of the trade agreement sent shockwaves through the local economy, forcing many small businesses to seek alternative suppliers immediately.

### 2. firing an employee

noun · CEFR B2 · Formal

the act of making someone leave their job.

For teachers: the act of ending an employee's period of employment, whether voluntary or involuntary.

- He received a letter of termination after failing to meet his sales targets.
- Human Resources handled the termination with professional discretion, ensuring all severance protocols were followed according to the employee's original contract.

### 3. abortion

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal · Technical

a medical operation to end a pregnancy.

For teachers: the medical procedure of induced abortion.

- She went to the clinic to discuss the termination of her pregnancy.
- The patient requested a medical termination after the screening revealed severe genetic abnormalities that would prevent the foetus from surviving until birth.

### 4. word ending

noun · CEFR C2 · Academic · Technical

the last part of a word, like a suffix.

For teachers: the final part of a word, especially an inflectional or derivational suffix.

- In Latin, the termination of a noun tells you its role in the sentence.
- The linguist noted that the specific termination used in this dialect differs significantly from the standard grammatical rules of the mainland.

Usage: In linguistics, this refers specifically to the morphological ending of a word.

## Examples

- The contract includes a clause for early termination.
- The sudden termination of the project left many employees wondering about their future with the company.
- Legal experts argued that the termination of the agreement was invalid because the required thirty-day notice period had not been observed by the primary stakeholder.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.