End

How to spell end

3 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce end

What does end mean?

1. nounThe final part or furthest point of something, in space or time.
2. verbTo bring or come to a finish; to stop.

End in a sentence

• noun

  The parcel was left at the end of the driveway.

• verb

  The meeting will end promptly at noon.

• noun

  The budget must be approved by the end of the month.

• verb

  They decided to end the contract early.

Where does end come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

The word comes from the Old English ende, meaning a boundary, a limit, or the final part of something. It traces back to the Proto-Germanic root andja, which gave related forms across the Germanic languages, including the Dutch einde and the German Ende. The original sense covered both the physical edge of an object and the conclusion of a stretch of time or action, and English has kept that double life ever since. Because it descends from the native Anglo-Saxon stock rather than from Latin or French, the spelling stayed short and phonetic, with no silent letters or borrowed quirks. That plain three-letter shape is exactly why it has remained one of the most stable and easily spelled words in English.

How the word is built

• end (from Old English ende: boundary, limit, conclusion); a single unanalysable root