ter·mi·nal

[tur-muh-nl]
adjective
1.
situated at or forming the end or extremity of something: a terminal feature of a vista.
2.
occurring at or forming the end of a series, succession, or the like; closing; concluding.
3.
pertaining to or lasting for a term or definite period; occurring at fixed terms or in every term: terminal payments.
4.
pertaining to, situated at, or forming the terminus of a railroad.
5.
Botany. growing at the end of a branch or stem, as a bud or inflorescence.
6.
Architecture. noting a figure, as a herm or term, in the form of a bust upon a gaine.
7.
pertaining to or placed at a boundary, as a landmark.
8.
occurring at or causing the end of life: a terminal disease.
9.
Informal. utterly beyond hope, rescue, or saving: The undercapitalized project is a terminal problem.
noun
10.
a terminal part of a structure; end or extremity.
11.
Railroads. a major assemblage of station, yard, maintenance, and repair facilities, as at a terminus, at which trains originate or terminate, or at which they are distributed or combined.
12.
Computers. any device for entering information into a computer or receiving information from it, as a keyboard with video display unit, either adjoining the computer or at some distance from it.
13.
a station on the line of a public carrier, as in a city center or at an airport, where passengers embark or disembark and where freight is received or discharged.
14.
Electricity.
a.
the mechanical device by means of which an electric connection to an apparatus is established.
b.
the point of current entry to, or point of current departure from, any conducting component in an electric circuit.
15.
Architecture.
a.
a herm or term.
b.
a carving or the like at the end of something, as a finial.
00:10
Terminal is always a great word to know.
So is antheridia. Does it mean:
form of a diploid plant in the alternation of generations that produces asexual spores
male reproductive structure which produces gametes in ferns, mosses, fungi and algae
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Origin:
1480–90; late Middle English < Latin terminālis, equivalent to termin(us) end, limit + -ālis -al1

Related forms
ter·mi·nal·ly, adverb
in·ter·ter·mi·nal, adjective
non·ter·mi·nal, adjective
non·ter·mi·nal·ly, adverb
pre·ter·mi·nal, adjective
sub·ter·mi·nal, adjective
sub·ter·mi·nal·ly, adverb

Can be confused: terminal, terminus.

Synonyms
1, 2. final, ending, ultimate. 8. fatal, mortal, lethal.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
terminal (ˈtɜːmɪnəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—adj
1.  of, being, or situated at an end, terminus, or boundary: a terminal station; terminal buds
2.  of, relating to, or occurring after or in a term: terminal leave
3.  (of a disease) terminating in death: terminal cancer
4.  informal extreme: terminal boredom
5.  of or relating to the storage or delivery of freight at a warehouse: a terminal service
 
—n
6.  a terminating point, part, or place
7.  a.  a point at which current enters or leaves an electrical device, such as a battery or a circuit
 b.  a conductor by which current enters or leaves at such a point
8.  computing a device having input/output links with a computer but situated at a distance from the computer
9.  architect
 a.  an ornamental carving at the end of a structure
 b.  another name for term
10.  a.  a point or station usually at the end of the line of a railway, serving as an important access point for passengers or freight
 b.  a less common name for terminus
11.  a purpose-built reception and departure structure at the terminus of a bus, sea, or air transport route
12.  a site where raw material is unloaded, stored, in some cases reprocessed, and reloaded for further transportation, esp an onshore installation designed to receive offshore oil or gas from tankers or a pipeline
13.  physiol
 a.  the smallest arteriole before its division into capillaries
 b.  either of two veins that collect blood from the thalamus and surrounding structures and empty it into the internal cerebral vein
 c.  the portion of a bronchiole just before it subdivides into the air sacs of the lungs
 
[C15: from Latin terminālis, from terminus end]
 
'terminally
 
—adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

terminal
1459, "relating to or marking boundaries," from L. terminalis "pertaining to a boundary or end, final," from terminus "end, boundary line" (see terminus). Meaning "fatal" (terminal illness) is first recorded 1891. Sense of "situated at the extreme end of something" is from
1805. The noun sense of "end point of a railway line" is from 1888; that of "device for communicating with a computer" is first recorded 1954. Slang meaning "extreme" first recorded 1983.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

terminal ter·mi·nal (tûr'mə-nəl)
adj.

  1. Of, relating to, situated at, or forming a limit, a boundary, an extremity, or an end.

  2. Of, relating to, occurring at, or being the end of a section or series; final.

  3. Causing, ending in, or approaching death; fatal.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
terminal   (tûr'mə-nəl)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. Electricity

  2. A position in a circuit or device at which a connection can be made or broken. See Note at battery.

  3. Computer Science A device, often equipped with a keyboard and a video display, by which one can read, enter, or manipulate information in a computer system.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

terminal definition


1. An electronic or electromechanical device for entering data into a computer or a communications system and displaying data received. Early terminals were called teletypes, later ones VDUs. Typically a terminal communicates with the computer via a serial line.
2. 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.
3. Apparatus to send and/or receive signals on a line.
(1995-10-02)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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Example sentences
Then, after donning his own protective gear, he turns to a computer terminal bolted to the dash of his vehicle.
When it's in the terminal stage, there isn't any pain.
It will output the sorted results directly in the terminal.
For millions more, it is the final stage of terminal illness.
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