close

1 of 5

verb

ˈklōz 

closed; closing

transitive verb

1

a

: to move so as to bar passage through something

Close the gate.

b

: to block against entry or passage

close a street

c

: to deny access to

The city closed the beach.

d

: to suspend or stop the operations of

close school

—often used with down

They closed down the factory.

e

: screen, exclude

close a view

2

a

: to bring to an end or period

close an account

closed his football career with an outstanding big bowl performance

Investigators closed the case after concluding that his death was accidental.

b

: to terminate access to (a computer file or program)

Remember to save the file before closing it.

c

: to conclude discussion or negotiation about

The question is closed.

also : to consummate (see consummate entry 2 sense 2) by performing something previously agreed

close a transfer of real estate title

3

a

: to bring or bind together the parts or edges of

a closed book

b

: to reduce to nil

closed the distance to the lead racer

c

: to fill up (something, such as an opening)

close the cracks with plaster of paris

d

: to make complete by circling or enveloping or by making continuous

close a circuit

4

archaic : enclose, contain

intransitive verb

1

a

: to contract, fold, swing, or slide so as to leave no opening

The door closed quietly.

b

: to cease operation

The factory closed down.

The stores close at 9 p.m.

2

a

: to come together : meet

The jaws of the vise closed.

b

: to draw the free foot up to the supporting foot in dancing

3

: to come to an end or period

The services closed with a short prayer.

4

: to enter into or complete an agreement

close on a deal

5

: to reduce a gap

closed to within two points

6

a

: to draw near

The ship was closing with the island.

b

: to engage in a struggle at close quarters : grapple

close with the enemy

closable adjective

or closeable

ˈklō-zə-bəl 

close

2 of 5

adjective

ˈklōs 

closer; closest

1

: being near in time, space, effect, or degree

at close range

close to my birthday

close to the speed of sound

2

: intimate, familiar

close friends

3

: strict, rigorous

keep close watch

4

a

: very precise and attentive to details

a close reading

a close study

b

: marked by fidelity to an original

a close copy of an old master

c

: terse, compact

… his exact, close, sober classical style …

—Edmund Wilson

5

: decided or won by a narrow margin

a close baseball game

6

a

: very short or near to the surface

a close haircut

b

: fitting tightly or exactly

a close fit

7

: confined or carefully guarded

close quarters

close arrest

8

: having little space between items or units

a close weave

a close grain

9

: hot and stuffy

a room with an uncomfortably close atmosphere

10

: difficult to obtain

Money is close.

11

: not generous in giving or spending : tight

… a close buyer and a good marketer.

—W. A. White

12

: having no openings : closed

13

: restricted to a privileged class

a close scholarship

14

a

: secluded, secret

b

: secretive

She could tell us something if she would …. But she was as close as wax.

—A. Conan Doyle

15

a

of a vowel : high sense 13

b

: formed with the tongue in a higher position than for the other vowel of a pair

Italian has a close and an open e.

16

of punctuation : characterized by liberal use especially of commas

closely adverb

closeness noun

close

3 of 5

adverb

ˈklōs 

: in a close position or manner

Don't drive so close to the car in front of you.

Look close and tell me what you see.

They sat close together on the bench.

close

4 of 5

noun (1)

ˈklōz 

1

a

: a coming or bringing to a conclusion

at the close of the party

b

: a conclusion or end in time or existence : cessation

The decade drew to a close.

c

: the concluding passage (as of a speech or play)

At the close of his speech, he thanked his supporters.

2

: the conclusion of a musical strain or period : cadence

Following the close of the symphony, the audience rose and applauded.

3

: the movement of the free foot in dancing toward or into contact with the supporting foot

4

archaic : a hostile encounter

close

5 of 5

noun (2)

ˈklōs 

U.S. also

ˈklōz 

1

a

chiefly British : the precinct (see precinct sense 2a) of a cathedral

b

: an enclosed area

2

chiefly British

a

: a road closed at one end

b

: a narrow passage leading from a street to a court and the houses within or to the common stairway of tenements

Phrases

close one's doors

1

: to refuse admission

The nation closed its doors to immigrants.

2

: to go out of business

The furniture store closed its doors last week.

close one's eyes to

: to ignore deliberately

Officials closed their eyes to allegations of child abuse at the day care center.

close ranks

: to unite in a concerted stand especially to meet a challenge

The family closed ranks to protect one of their own.

close the door

: to be uncompromisingly obstructive

closed the door to further negotiation

close to home

: within one's personal interests so that one is strongly affected

The speaker's remarks hit close to home.

close to the bone

: within a sensitive or personal area

The criticism cut close to the bone.

close to the vest

: in a reserved or cautious manner

She tends to keep her opinions close to the vest.

Synonyms

Verb

• make [chiefly dialect]
• shut
• steek [chiefly Scottish]

Adjective

• compact
• crowded
• dense
• jam-packed
• packed
• serried
• thick
• tight

Adverb

• around
• by
• hard
• in
• near
• nearby
• nigh

Noun (1)

• arrest
• arrestment
• cease
• cessation
• check
• closedown
• closure
• conclusion
• cutoff
• discontinuance
• discontinuation
• end
• ending
• expiration
• finish
• halt
• lapse
• offset
• shutdown
• shutoff
• stay
• stop
• stoppage
• surcease
• termination

Noun (2)

• court
• courtyard
• enclosure
• inclosure
• patio
• quad
• quadrangle
• yard

Choose the Right Synonym for close

Verb

close, end, conclude, finish, complete, terminate mean to bring or come to a stopping point or limit.

close usually implies that something has been in some way open as well as unfinished.

close a debate

end conveys a strong sense of finality.

ended his life

conclude may imply a formal closing (as of a meeting).

the service concluded with a blessing

finish may stress completion of a final step in a process.

after it is painted, the house will be finished

complete implies the removal of all deficiencies or a successful finishing of what has been undertaken.

the resolving of this last issue completes the agreement

terminate implies the setting of a limit in time or space.

your employment terminates after three months

Adjective

stingy, close, niggardly, parsimonious, penurious, miserly mean being unwilling or showing unwillingness to share with others.

stingy implies a marked lack of generosity.

a stingy child, not given to sharing

close suggests keeping a tight grip on one's money and possessions.

folks who are very close when charity calls

niggardly implies giving or spending the very smallest amount possible.

the niggardly amount budgeted for the town library

parsimonious suggests a frugality so extreme as to lead to stinginess.

a parsimonious lifestyle notably lacking in luxuries

penurious implies niggardliness that gives an appearance of actual poverty.

the penurious eccentric bequeathed a fortune

miserly suggests a sordid avariciousness and a morbid pleasure in hoarding.

a miserly couple devoid of social conscience

Examples of close in a Sentence

Verb

We had better close the windows; it looks like it's going to rain.

I forgot to close the gate.

She was having trouble closing the drawer.

Close the lid on the box tightly.

The door opened and closed so quietly that I didn't notice he had come in the room.

The box's lid closed with a bang.

Remember to close the box of cereal when you're done.

Please close your books and put them under your desks.

Close your eyes and go to sleep.

I closed my fists and got ready to fight.

Adjective

We're not there yet, but we're getting close.

We stood close together to stay warm.

Christmas is getting closer and will soon be here.

Their daughters are close in age.

close in size and shape

at the close of the evening

managed to conduct the negotiations to a satisfactory close

Adverb

Don't drive so close to the car in front of you.

He told me to stay close as we walked through the crowd.

The time for a decision is drawing closer.

My teammate came in third, and I finished close behind.

They sat close together at the dinner table.

a garden in a close at the center of the complex

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Carney, a central banker with little formal government experience, called a snap election late last month as the liberal party surged in polls to close a more-than-20-point deficit since the beginning of 2025. —Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025

On Sundays, hours are 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. It will be closed for tours on Thanksgiving Day. —Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 28 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Melania Trump wears black veil to Pope Francis' funeral as President Trump dons blue suit As the president's second term in office passes the 100-day mark, here is a closer look at the first lady's lookbook. —Jay Stahl, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2025

That means everything from personally running product development to maintaining close relationships with distribution partners. —Javier Hasse, Forbes.com, 29 Apr. 2025

Adverb

With each flight to and from the embassy, Berry could see the crowds outside the it growing – and North Vietnamese forces drawing closer. —Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 30 Apr. 2025

Science, too, is built on details, on looking closer. —Avery Schuyler Nunn, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Apr. 2025

Noun

The school will close its doors at the end of its current semester after coming up with just over $2 million from roughly 200 donors, university officials said at the close of their two week campaign. —Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 1 May 2025

As the first month of the MLB season comes to a close, some teams have already established themselves as trade deadline sellers, while contenders have already begun to see their internal weaknesses. —Tyler Small, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun (1)

Middle English, from Anglo-French clos-, stem of clore, from Latin claudere to shut, close; perhaps akin to Greek kleiein to close — more at clavicle

Adjective

Middle English clos, from Anglo-French, from Latin clausus, past participle of claudere — see close entry 1

Noun (2)

Middle English clos, literally, enclosure, from Anglo-French clos, from Latin clausum, from neuter of clausus, past participle

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 12

Adverb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Phrases Containing close

• at close quarters
• at close range
• at/in close quarters
• close at hand
• close but no cigar
• close by
• close by (someone or something)
• close call
• close corporation
• close-cropped
• close/dear/near to one's heart
• close-fitting
• close-grained
• close/hard/hot on someone's or something's heels
• close-hauled
• close in
• close in on
• close-knit
• close-minded
• close off
• close on
• close one
• close order
• close out
• close quarters
• close resemblance
• close/seal the deal
• close-set
• close shave
• close the door on
• close the gap
• close/tight finish
• close to
• close to home
• close to someone's heart
• close to tears
• close to the bone
• close to the edge
• close to the mark
• close to the vest
• close to the wind
• close-up
• close up shop
• come close
• come/follow close/hard/hot on something's heels
• come/follow close/hard/hot on the heels of (something)
• complimentary close
• cut it close
• draw to a close
• hold/keep/play (something) close to one's chest
• hold/keep/play (something) close to the vest
• in close proximity
• in close proximity to
• in close pursuit
• in close quarters
• keep a close check on
• keep a close watch/eye
• keep a close watch over
• letters close
• lives close to the edge
• perilously close to
• play/hold/keep one's cards close to the/one's chest/vest
• sail close to the wind
• too close for comfort
• too close to call
• up close

Rhymes for close

• dose
• gros
• rowse
• adios
• adipose
• amylose
• bellicose
• cellulose
• centavos
• comatose
• diagnose
• grandiose

Kids Definition

close

1 of 5 verb

ˈklōz 

closed; closing

1

a

: to move so as to prevent passage through something

close the gate

b

: to block against passage

close a street

2

: to stop the operations of

close school early

—often used with down

3

a

: to bring or come to an end or conclusion

close a deal

the meeting closed

b

: to end access to

close an app

4

: to bring together the parts or edges of

a closed fist

close the book

5

a

: to draw near

the second-place runner was closing fast

b

: to engage in a struggle at close quarters

close with the enemy

closer noun

close

2 of 5 noun

ˈklōz 

: the point at which something ends

close

3 of 5 noun

ˈklōs 

: an enclosed area

close

4 of 5 adjective

ˈklōs 

closer; closest

1

: having no openings : closed

2

a

: hidden from sight

b

: not open or frank : secretive

3

: rigorous sense 1

keep close watch

4

: hot and stuffy

5

: not generous : stingy

close with money

6

: having little space between items or units

flying in close formation

7

: fitting tightly or exactly

8

: very short or near the surface

a close haircut

9

: being near in time, space, effect, or degree

10

: having a strong liking each one for the other

a close friend

11

: very precise and attentive to details

close measurements

a close observer

12

: decided by a narrow margin

a close race

closely adverb

closeness noun

close

5 of 5 adverb

ˈklōs 

: in a close position or manner

Legal Definition

close

1 of 2 verb

closed; closing

transitive verb

1

: to bring to an end or to a state of completion

closed the case

close an estate by liquidating its assets

closing his account

2

: to conclude discussion or negotiation about

also : to bring to completion by performing something previously agreed

closing a merger

close the property sale

intransitive verb

1

: to enter into or complete an agreement (as for the sale of real estate)

they closed on the house

2

: to come to an end or to a state of completion

after the class closes, the trust shall continue…until the death of the last surviving member of the class

—Louisiana Revised Statutes

close

2 of 2 noun

: an enclosed area

break another's close

Biographical Definition

Close

biographical name

ˈklōz 

commonly

ˈklōs 

Chuck 1940–2021 Charles Thomas Close American painter