dead-end

adjective

\ ˈded-ˌend

Definition of dead-end

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : lacking opportunities especially for advancement a dead-end job

b : lacking an exit a dead-end street

2 : unruly dead-end kids

dead-end

verb

\ ˈded-ˈend

dead-ended; dead-ending; dead-ends

Definition of dead-end (Entry 2 of 3)

intransitive verb

: to come to a dead end : terminate the road dead-ends at the lake the investigation dead-ended

dead end

noun

\ ˈded-ˈend

Definition of dead end (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : an end (as of a street) without an exit

2 : a position, situation, or course of action that leads to nothing further

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Examples of dead-end in a Sentence

Noun

We came to a dead end and had to turn around. My career has hit a dead end.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

But the idea that the Right is weak — and that classical liberalism is a dead end, a source of that weakness — is pure fiction. — David French, National Review, "Against Conservative Cultural Defeatism," 4 June 2019 The focus on launching new faces on an exclusive contract has led many newcomers, who may debut at a prominent show one season only to fade into obscurity the next, towards a dead end. — Janelle Okwodu, Vogue, "Kering Commits to Using Models Over 18: Will the Rest of the Fashion World Follow Suit?," 15 May 2019 Although most visitors treat Cades Cove as a dead end, intrepid drivers can follow two other routes out of the valley (although both are closed in winter). — Joe Yogerst, National Geographic, "Everything to know about Great Smoky Mountains National Park," 28 Mar. 2019 Bank loans turned out to be another dead end: The Pines had no collateral and was still only about half-occupied. — Dan Frosch, WSJ, "The Year Hurricane Harvey Swamped a Neighborhood—and Split a Friendship," 16 Aug. 2018 In another instance, a Rakhine student leader said that many of his fellow students are connected online with Arakan Army soldiers and are considering joining up, feeling that politics is a dead end. — Jon Emont, WSJ, "Feuding Monks Expose Bitter Ethnic Buddhist Divisions in Myanmar," 9 Feb. 2019 But these are the same critics who have coaxed Mr. Trump to crash into one immigration dead end after another. — The Editorial Board, WSJ, "Declaring Border Victory," 12 Feb. 2019 This technique had been shown to work with laboratory rats in Air Force experiments, but ultimately the research hit a dead end. — David Hambling, Popular Mechanics, "The Long, Weird History of Strobe Weapons," 11 Feb. 2019 After all, every previous media-hair-on-fire moment has come to a forgettable dead end. — Margaret Hartmann, Daily Intelligencer, "Can You Spot All the Errors in Trump’s ‘Consensual Presidency’ Tweet?," 7 Jan. 2018

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