Terminal

Pronunciation

• US IPA: /ˈtÉšmɪnÉ™l/

Origin

From French terminal, from Late Latin terminalis ("pertaining to a boundary or to the end, terminal, final"), from Latin terminus ("a bound, boundary, limit, end"); see term, terminus.

Full definition of terminal

Noun

1. A building in an airport where passengers transfer from ground transportation to the facilities that allow them to board airplanes.
2. A rail station where service begins and ends; the end of the line. For example: Grand Central Terminal in New York City.
3. In electronics, the end of a line where signals are either transmitted or received, or a point along the length of a line where the signals are made available to apparatus.
4. An electric contact on a battery.
5. In telecommunications, the apparatus to send and/or receive signals on a line, such as a telephone or network device.
6. (computing) In the context of computer hardware, a device for entering data into a computer or a communications system and/or displaying data received, especially a device equipped with a keyboard and some sort of textual display.
7. (computing) A computer program that emulates a terminal (6).
8. (computing theory) A terminal symbol in a formal grammar.

Related terms

• coterminal
• term
• terminable
• terminally
• terminate
• terminus

Adjective

1. (illness) Fatal; resulting in death.(example) terminal cancer
2. Appearing at the end; top or apex of a physical object.
3. Occurring at the end of a word, sentence, or period of time.

Related terms

• term
• terminus
• terminate
• termination
• (illness) uncurable

Synonyms

• (appearing at the end) final, late

Antonyms

• non-terminal
• (illness) early
• (appearing at the end) initial, early

Anagrams

• tramline