ceases 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of cease
1
as in stops
to come to an end the rain finally ceased, and we were able to continue the baseball game

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in halts
to bring (as an action or operation) to an immediate end cease chattering and get down to work, please

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

ceases

2 of 2

noun

plural of cease
as in cessations
the stopping of a process or activity worked without cease for the betterment of humanity

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ceases
Verb
The world outside ceases to exist as nurses, relatives, and clergy visit. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 27 Oct. 2026 In that structure, every hour of human labor ceases to be a revenue stream and becomes a direct cost against the provider’s profit margin. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 Oct. 2026 If the person holding key intellectual property or leading the company risks losing status, immigration planning ceases to be a personal ordeal. — Bernardo Saraiva, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026 There is a point beyond which the scale of a threat or a danger ceases to scare us. — Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, New Yorker, 27 Sep. 2026 The audience ceases to be a destination for your voice and becomes the structure that shapes it. — Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026 But ultimately, for Liu, the initial concept ceases to matter; the act of constructing the image itself becomes more important than the starting point. — Lavender Au, ARTnews.com, 21 Sep. 2026 If the attack ceases, wait until the dog is at least 20 feet away before getting up. — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2026 The turf needs this lead time to absorb the nutrients before growth ceases in winter. — Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ceases
  1. stops
  2. halts
  3. cessations
  4. ends
  5. quits
  6. endings
  7. expires
  8. closes
Verb
  • The New Braunfels, Texas, resident kept a frenetic touring schedule, headlining major Texas venues and mid-sized dance halls around the country, with occasional arena or amphitheater stops opening for Koe Wetzel thrown in.
    — Josh Crutchmer, Rolling Stone, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Nighttime mouth breathing is associated with snoring, dry mouth, receding gums and sleep apnea, a disorder in which breathing stops repeatedly during sleep.
    — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of stops
Verb
  • The council voted unanimously on the ordinance, which halts new oil and gas drilling in the city and phases out existing production over the next 20 years.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026
  • The Bears go three-and-out, and the wind halts the ensuing punt, landing at the 15-yard line.
    — Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of halts
Noun
  • Temporary cessations of hostility, but no permanent closing of the moral and social divide between debtor and creditor, and no giving up on the thought that some lives matter more than others.
    — Henry Freedland, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
Definition of cessations
Verb
  • When the school day ends, the campus keeps serving families through aftercare, summer camp and school-break programs.
    — Tim Lonergan, Sun Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Daylight saving time ends on the first Sunday in November, according to Time and Date, an online world clock.
    — Hannah Poukish, Sacbee.com, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of ends
Verb
  • Continue reading ⦠CIVIC BREAKDOWN â Town's entire police force quits after bitter feud with city leaders boils over.
    — , FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Every researcher who quits Anthropic to write a viral letter about extinction is casting himself, in the drama running in his own head, as Oppenheimer walking away from the bomb.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of quits
Noun
  • The main reason the Giants have a chance to win every week, though, despite all their injuries and heart-stopping endings, is that Jameis Winston is playing well as their starting quarterback.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Dramatic — and sometimes controversial — endings were the story of a wild college football Saturday, with late-game calls deciding some outcomes and potentially having an effect on how the College Football Playoff shapes up a couple months from now.
    — Tim Reynolds, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of endings
Verb
  • So Skydance is hardly in position to spend $20 million to $30 million a year on Aikman or compete with ESPN to land Olsen, whose Fox contract expires after the season.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The timeline calls for the Royals to move to the new stadium a year before the team’s lease at Kauffman Stadium expires.
    — Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of expires
Noun
  • Whether China and the United States blunder into war before that window closes will be among the defining questions of the coming years.
    — NIALL FERGUSON, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Big for Club name Nvidia, which has posted back-to-back record closes.
    — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of closes

Browse Nearby Words

ceaselessness
ceases
ceasing
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ceases.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ceases. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of satiate

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

Ten More Words from Taylor Swift Songs

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All