terminal

1 of 2

adjective

ter·​mi·​nal ˈtərm-nəl 

ˈtər-mə-nᵊl

1

a(1)

: leading ultimately to death : fatal

terminal cancer

(2)

: approaching or close to death : being in the final stages of a fatal disease

a terminal patient

(3)

: of or relating to patients with a terminal illness

terminal care

b

: of, relating to, or occurring in a term or each term

terminal payments

c

: extremely or hopelessly severe

terminal boredom

2

a

: of or relating to an end, extremity, boundary, or terminus

a terminal pillar

b

: growing at the end of a branch or stem

a terminal bud

3

a

: occurring at or constituting the end of a period or series : concluding

the terminal moments of life

b

: not intended as preparation for further academic work

a terminal curriculum

terminally adverb

terminal

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: either end of a carrier line having facilities for the handling of freight and passengers

b

: a freight or passenger station that is central to a considerable area or serves as a junction at any point with other lines

c

: a town or city at the end of a carrier line : terminus

2

: a combination of a keyboard and output device (such as a video display unit) by which data can be entered into or output from a computer or electronic communications system

3

: a device attached to the end of a wire or cable or to an electrical apparatus for convenience in making connections

4

: a part that forms the end : extremity, termination

5

: a terminating usually ornamental detail : finial

Synonyms

Adjective

• bottommost
• closing
• concluding
• final
• hindmost
• lag
• last
• latest
• latter
• rearmost
• terminating
• ultimate

Choose the Right Synonym for terminal

last, final, terminal, ultimate mean following all others (as in time, order, or importance).

last applies to something that comes at the end of a series but does not always imply that the series is completed or stopped.

last page of a book

last news we had of him

final applies to that which definitely closes a series, process, or progress.

final day of school

terminal may indicate a limit of extension, growth, or development.

terminal phase of a disease

ultimate implies the last degree or stage of a long process beyond which further progress or change is impossible.

the ultimate collapse of the system

Examples of terminal in a Sentence

Adjective

She was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

I was suffering from terminal boredom.

another person with terminal stupidity

branches that end in a terminal bud

Noun

I will meet you outside the bus terminal.

Flight 1584 is now departing from Gate 6 in Terminal A.

You are not allowed in the terminal without a ticket.

Ten terminals are connected to this server.

You will need to clean the corrosion off the battery terminals.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

For departures, this starts with a handler greeting you at the terminal or rental car facility. —Madison Flager, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Apr. 2024

Dear Miss Manners: I have been diagnosed with a (quite likely) terminal illness. —Jacobina Martin, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024

One of his most personal shows to date centers around his late father, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer around 2010. —Emily Weaver, Peoplemag, 30 Mar. 2024

The new terminal building is expected to be operational by May 2024, with the full facility up and running by the end of November. —Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Mar. 2024

Here’s what to know about the terminal trains: What is the Skytrain? —Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 29 Mar. 2024

Kin + Carta’s bot can create longer product descriptions at a faster rate than human writers, and doesn’t succumb to terminal boredom while doing so. —Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 27 Mar. 2024

The discretionary awards are on top of nearly $2 billion in similar awards made over the past two years under the law’s Airport Terminal Program, a $5 billion fund for competitive grants to support terminal upgrades. —Harriet Baskas, NBC News, 24 Mar. 2024

This could also be when terminal patients get serious about planning for funerals and memorials, as well as seeing to their other affairs, both emotional and material. —Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024

Noun

Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets. —USA TODAY, 24 Apr. 2024

The American had a computer tablet in his car, operating Project Maven through Palantir’s software and connected to a Starlink terminal. —David E. Sanger, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2024

Brightline West, whose sister company already operates a fast train between Miami and Orlando in Florida, aims to lay 218 miles (351 kilometers) of new track between a terminal to be built just south of the Las Vegas Strip and another new facility in Rancho Cucamonga, California. —Ken Ritter, Fortune, 22 Apr. 2024

The police claim that the suspects used a forklift to load the cargo into a white unmarked box truck and simply drove the truck out of the Air Canada Cargo terminal. —Ryan Erik King / Jalopnik, Quartz, 18 Apr. 2024

Operating the terminals required mastering specific commands and coding languages. —IEEE Spectrum, 16 Apr. 2024

However, that 2015 study, led by a University of Missouri engineering professor, also found 4.8% of all fatal and injury crashes occurring at the ramp terminal of a diverging diamond were wrong-way crashes. —Tom Daykin, Journal Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2024

Both loads were tested for contaminants twice — once at the terminals where the Centerline barge and tugboat picked up the fuel, and again at the time the fuel was delivered to the Dali, documents show. —Jon Schuppe, NBC News, 5 Apr. 2024

In exchange for allowing more launches, SpaceX has proposed placing internet terminals at Jalama Beach, which could help manage reservations and notify visitors when an evacuation could occur. —Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Latin terminalis, from terminus

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Noun

1838, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Phrases Containing terminal

• in terminal decline
• inter-terminal
• terminal leave
• terminal side

Kids Definition

terminal

1 of 2 adjective

ter·​mi·​nal ˈtərm-nəl 

-ən-ᵊl

1

a

: of, relating to, or forming an end

a terminal pillar of a temple

b

: growing at the end of a branch or stem

a terminal bud

2

a

: of, relating to, or occurring in a term or each term

make terminal payments on a car

b

: leading finally to death

a terminal illness

3

: occurring at or being the end of a period or series

terminally

-ē

adverb

terminal

2 of 2 noun

1

: a part that forms the end

2

: a device attached to the end of a wire or cable or to electrical equipment for making connections

3

a

: either end of a transportation line (as a railroad or shipping line) with its offices and freight and passenger stations

b

: a freight or passenger station that serves a large area or acts as a junction between lines

a bus terminal

c

: a town at the end of a transportation line

4

: a device (as in a computer system) used for data entry and display

Medical Definition

terminal

1 of 2 adjective

ter·​mi·​nal ˈtərm-nəl, -ən-ᵊl 

1

: of, relating to, or being at an end, extremity, boundary, or terminus

the terminal phalanx of a finger

2

a

: leading ultimately to death : fatal

terminal cancer

b

: approaching or close to death : being in the final stages of a fatal disease

a terminal patient

c

: of or relating to patients with a terminal illness

terminal care

3

: being at or near the end of a chain of atoms making up a molecule

the terminal carbon

terminally

-ē 

adverb

terminal

2 of 2 noun

: a part that forms an end

especially : nerve ending

synthesis of a neurotransmitter in the presynaptic terminal of a neuron

—R. J. Wurtman