dead-end

Origin

noun

something, as a street or water pipe, that has no exit.

a position that offers no hope of progress; blind alley; cul-de-sac: His theory led him to a dead end.

Origin:
1885–90

00:10

00:09

00:08

00:07

00:06

00:05

00:04

00:03

00:02

00:01

Dead-end is one of our favorite verbs.

So is peculate. Does it mean:

to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

to run away hurriedly; flee.

Dictionary.com Unabridged

adjective

terminating in a dead end: a dead-end street.

Also, dead-end·ed. having no possibility for or hope of progress, advancement, etc.: a low-level, dead-end job.

leading a life in the slums: growing up as a tough dead-end kid.

verb (used without object)

to come to a dead end: The road dead-ends at the lake.

Origin:
1885–90

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

dead end

"closed end of a passage," 1886, from dead + end. Figurative use is attested from 1922. As an adj., from 1928; as a verb, from 1921.

Word Dynamo Rating For Dead-end

Related Words

Matching Quote