conclude

verb con·clude \ kən-ˈklüd \

Definition of conclude

concluded; concluding

transitive verb

1 obsolete :to shut up :enclose

2 :to bring to an end especially in a particular way or with a particular action

conclude a meeting

3 a :to reach as a logically necessary end by reasoning :infer on the basis of evidence

concluded that her argument was sound

b :to make a decision about :decide

concluded he would wait a little longer

c :to come to an agreement on :effect

conclude a sale

concluded a peace treaty

4 :to bring about as a result :complete

intransitive verb

1 :end

The festivities concluded at midnight.

2 a :to form a final judgment

b :to reach a decision or agreement

—

concluder

noun

See conclude defined for English-language learners

See conclude defined for kids

Examples of conclude in a Sentence

The investigation has not yet concluded.
The meeting concluded at noon.
The chairman concluded by wishing us all a happy holiday.
We concluded the meeting on a happy note.
The chairman concluded his speech by wishing us all a happy holiday.
We conclude from our review of the evidence that they are right.
Many studies have concluded that smoking is dangerous.
The speech, many historians concluded, was the most important of his career.
Their effort to conclude an agreement was a success.

Recent Examples of conclude from the Web

Later she was laid to rest on her family's estate, concluding one of the most extraordinary weeks in the modern history of Britain.

— jennifer amur, Washington Post, "How Britain and the world mourned Diana, the ‘People’s Princess,’ over 8 days in 1997," 31 Aug. 2017
Ford said the commission concluded that the Prospect Cove project met the stipulations of the metro comprehensive land-use plan and that the design and density were suitable for the site.

— sheldon s. shafer, The Courier-Journal, "Prospect doesn't want this senior housing project. Planners approved the rezoning anyway," 30 Aug. 2017
Now, reports Helen Briggs at the BBC, a recent experiment concludes that sea birds do indeed sniff their way around the ocean, using a scent map to find their way.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "Seabirds Use Their Sense of Smell to Navigate Open Water," 30 Aug. 2017
After leaving Villanova in 1992, Mr. Massimino’s long major-college career concluded at two tarnished programs, UNLV and Cleveland State.

— frank fitzpatrick, Philly.com, "Former Villanova coach Rollie Massimino dies at 82," 30 Aug. 2017
So the community never concluded that a drunk was beyond saving.

— Longreads, "America’s First Addiction Epidemic," 29 Aug. 2017
Warner Bros. launched an investigation into the incident and concluded there was no evidence of misconduct; production resumed a few weeks later.

— christopher rosa, Glamour, "Corinne Olympios Just Gave Her First TV Interview About the 'Bachelor in Paradise' Controversy," 29 Aug. 2017
Once the ceremony concluded, members of the crowd mingled for a time as more blanks were fired from multiple replica Civil War cannons.

— connor sheets, AL.com, "New Confederate memorial unveiled in Alabama," 27 Aug. 2017
These will be the Nobel Prize-winning troubadour’s first concerts anywhere since his summer tour concluded on July 25 in Vancouver, Canada.

— george varga, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Bob Dylan to play two fall concerts, starting at Harrah's Resort SoCal," 25 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'conclude.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of conclude

Middle English, from Latin concludere to shut up, end, infer, from com- + claudere to shut — more at close

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

conclude Synonyms

Synonyms

close out, complete, close, end, finish, round (off or out), terminate, wind up, wrap up

Antonyms

begin, commence, inaugurate, open, start

Related Words

climax, crown; consummate, perfect; halt, stop, suspend

Near Antonyms

draw out, extend, prolong, protract

Synonym Discussion of conclude

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

infer, deduce, conclude, judge, gather mean to arrive at a mental conclusion. infer implies arriving at a conclusion by reasoning from evidence; if the evidence is slight, the term comes close to surmise.

- from that remark, I inferred that they knew each other

deduce often adds to infer the special implication of drawing a particular inference from a generalization.

- denied we could deduce anything important from human mortality

conclude implies arriving at a necessary inference at the end of a chain of reasoning.

- concluded that only the accused could be guilty

judge stresses a weighing of the evidence on which a conclusion is based.

- judge people by their actions

gather suggests an intuitive forming of a conclusion from implications.

- gathered their desire to be alone without a word

CONCLUDE Defined for English Language Learners

conclude

verb

Definition of conclude for English Language Learners

: to stop or finish : to come to an end : to end in a particular way or with a particular action
: to cause (something) to stop or finish : to end (something) in a particular way or with a particular action
: to form or state (an opinion) : to decide (something) after a period of thought or research

CONCLUDE Defined for Kids

conclude

verb con·clude \ kən-ˈklüd \

Definition of conclude for Students

concluded; concluding

1 :to bring or come to an end :finish

conclude a speech

2 :to decide after a period of thought or research

I conclude that I was wrong.

3 :to bring about as a result

They would like to conclude an agreement on working together.

Word Root of conclude

The Latin word claudere, meaning “to close” or “to shut,” gives us the root clud. To exclude is to shut another out of a group. To include is to shut someone into a group. To conclude, or bring something, such as a speech, to an end, is to close it.