terminus

noun

ter·​mi·​nus ˈtər-mə-nəs 

plural termini ˈtər-mə-ˌnī  -ˌnē  or terminuses

1

: either end of a transportation line or travel route

also : the station, town, or city at such a place : terminal

2

: an extreme point or element : tip

the terminus of a glacier

3

: a final goal : a finishing point

4

: a post or stone marking a boundary

Did you know?

This word comes straight from Latin. In the Roman empire, a terminus was a boundary stone, and all boundary stones had a minor god associated with them, whose name was Terminus. Terminus was a kind of keeper of the peace, since wherever there was a terminus there could be no arguments about where your property ended and your neighbor's property began. So Terminus even had his own festival, the Terminalia, when images of the god were draped with flower garlands. Today the word shows up in all kinds of places, including in the name of numerous hotels worldwide built near a city's railway terminus.

Examples of terminus in a Sentence

Stockholm is the terminus for the southbound train.

Geologists took samples from the terminus of the glacier.

the terminus of the DNA strand

Recent Examples on the Web

Discussed for more than 50 years, the project is set to extend the CTA’s Red Line from its current terminus at 95th Street to 130th Street and add four new train stations along the way. —Talia Soglin, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026

Located at Myers Flat, just a few miles from the Avenue’s southern terminus, the trunk of the Shrine Tree has been carved out with a passage just big enough to squeeze the average small SUV through. —Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 19 Apr. 2026

Zach Cross, followed by his wife Grayson and father Tim, hikes up Springer Mountain to the Southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail to start his thru-hike, Monday, May 1, 2023. —Judith Garrison, AJC.com, 15 Apr. 2026

The approximately 15-acre parking lot at the Meadowview light rail station, which was previously the southern terminus of the Blue Line, sits mostly empty, RT spokesperson Jessica Gonzalez said Tuesday. —Madison Smalstig, Sacbee.com, 14 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin, boundary marker, limit — more at term entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1617, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Phrases Containing terminus

• terminus ad quem
• terminus a quo

Rhymes for terminus

• conterminous
• coterminous

Kids Definition

terminus

noun

ter·​mi·​nus ˈtər-mə-nəs 

plural termini -ˌnī 

-ˌnē

or terminuses

1

: final goal : finishing point

2

: a post or stone marking a boundary

3

a

: either end of a transportation line or travel route

b

: the station or town at such a place

Medical Definition

terminus

noun

ter·​mi·​nus ˈtər-mə-nəs 

plural termini -ˌnī  -ˌnē  also terminuses

: an end or ending especially of a molecular chain, a chromosome, or a process of a nerve cell