1
as in finales
the last part of a process or action
the plagiarism scandal was a disgraceful ending to a once-promising academic career
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cessations
the stopping of a process or activity
the best part about any dental procedure is its ending
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of endings
Parents are choosing names with softer sounds and vowel endings such as Alonso, Ilyas, Amos, and Lennon for boys, and Rhea, Rosalina, Aura, Ines, and Zeina for girls.
—
Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 9 June 2026
The end of Dexter is so widely hated that it’s considered by many to be among the worst TV show endings ever.
—Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026
As far as endings go, Delgado Lopera doesn’t really like the happy ones.
—Laura Zornosa, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
What starts as a challenge soon turns into a witty, emotional enemies-to-lovers story that forces both writers to rethink their beliefs about love, happiness and happy endings.
—Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 8 June 2026
Prince also excelled at crafting perfect song endings, and this is undoubtedly one of his best.
—Ahmir “questlove” Thompson, VIBE.com, 7 June 2026
And some stories don’t have happy endings.
—Sean Gentille, New York Times, 3 June 2026
In an episode filled with tragic endings for various characters, including Rue herself, Faye sees some kind of hope on the horizon.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 1 June 2026
So no, Deborah was never going to die, and there were never any alternate endings beyond what wound up on screen.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 29 May 2026
Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 9 June 2026
The end of Dexter is so widely hated that it’s considered by many to be among the worst TV show endings ever.
—Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026
As far as endings go, Delgado Lopera doesn’t really like the happy ones.
—Laura Zornosa, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
What starts as a challenge soon turns into a witty, emotional enemies-to-lovers story that forces both writers to rethink their beliefs about love, happiness and happy endings.
—Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 8 June 2026
Prince also excelled at crafting perfect song endings, and this is undoubtedly one of his best.
—Ahmir “questlove” Thompson, VIBE.com, 7 June 2026
And some stories don’t have happy endings.
—Sean Gentille, New York Times, 3 June 2026
In an episode filled with tragic endings for various characters, including Rue herself, Faye sees some kind of hope on the horizon.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 1 June 2026
So no, Deborah was never going to die, and there were never any alternate endings beyond what wound up on screen.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for endings
Noun
-
Kansas City is 2-4 in rubber games and 6-14 in series finales.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 June 2026
-
Colbert’s goodbye — running some 17 minutes over — was ambitious in a way that other TV late night finales were not.—
Mark Kennedy,
Fortune,
23 May 2026
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
Noun
-
People can draw their own conclusions, though.—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
7 June 2026
-
Lee also warned about drawing strong conclusions from early returns, estimating that only about 40% of ballots cast had been counted through Wednesday.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
The drone filmed from the north and south ends of the channel and shot an FWC boat travelling around the same speed that Pino’s Robalo was going on the day of the crash and the same path before avoiding the piling at the last second.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
11 June 2026
-
Many of those students pay full price, helping colleges make ends meet.—
Alan Gionet,
CBS News,
11 June 2026
Noun
-
Full moons are culminations — don’t forget to pause and see what’s already come full circle before rushing into more.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
28 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In practice the printer ran for about 3 months (including setup and halts), whereas a traditional cast bridge might have taken 3–4 times longer.—
Srishti Gupta,
Interesting Engineering,
16 May 2026
-
Former leaders warn that the loss of institutional knowledge, combined with halts to the incoming pipeline of public health workers, may lead to a long-term crisis.—
Pien Huang,
NPR,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
To get the work done, expect continued lane closings and traffic shifts during off-peak and overnight hours.—
Amaia Gavica,
Miami Herald,
3 June 2026
-
With the four Neiman’s closings, 32 will continue to operate.—
David Moin,
Footwear News,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
His appearance as the first sitting president at an NBA Finals game brought a crackdown on security with checkpoints, magnetometers and street closures confounding fans, commuters and tourists.—
Brian Mahoney,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
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Bears prompt school closures in Japan Talk about an unexpected disruption.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
9 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Endings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/endings. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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