Idioms for end

Origin of end

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English ende; cognate with Old Frisian enda, Middle Dutch e(i)nde, Old Saxon endi, Old High German anti, German Ende, Old Norse endi(r), Gothic andeis “end,” from unattested Germanic anthjá-; akin to Sanskrit ánta- “end”

synonym study for end

5. End, close, conclusion, finish, outcome refer to the termination of something. End implies a natural termination or completion, or an attainment of purpose: the end of a day, of a race; to some good end. Close often implies a planned rounding off of something in process: the close of a conference. Conclusion suggests a decision or arrangement: All evidence leads to this conclusion; the conclusion of peace terms. Finish emphasizes completion of something begun: a fight to the finish. Outcome suggests the issue of something that was in doubt: the outcome of a game. 7. See aim.

OTHER WORDS FROM end

end·er, noun

British Dictionary definitions for make ends meet (1 of 2)

end 1
/ (ɛnd) /

noun

verb

See also end up

Derived forms of end

ender, noun

Word Origin for end

Old English ende; related to Old Norse endir, Gothic andeis, Old High German endi, Latin antiae forelocks, Sanskrit antya last

British Dictionary definitions for make ends meet (2 of 2)

end 2
/ (ɛnd) /

verb

(tr) British to put (hay or grain) into a barn or stack

Word Origin for end

Old English innian; related to Old High German innōn; see inn

Cultural definitions for make ends meet

make ends meet

To earn enough income to provide for basic needs: “The workers complained that on their present wages they could hardly make ends meet, let alone enjoy any luxuries.”

Idioms and Phrases with make ends meet (1 of 2)

make ends meet

Manage so that one's financial means are enough for one's needs, as in On that salary Enid had trouble making ends meet. This expression originated as make both ends meet, a translation from the French joindre les deux bouts (by John Clarke, 1639). The ends, it is assumed, allude to the sum total of income and expenditures. However, naval surgeon and novelist Tobias Smollett had it as “make the two ends of the year meet” (Roderick Random, 1748), thought to go back to the common practice of splicing rope ends together in order to cut shipboard expenses.

Idioms and Phrases with make ends meet (2 of 2)

end