Etymologically
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conclusion

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 02:50. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /kənˈkluː.ʒən/, /kəŋˈkluː.ʒən/, US /kənˈkluː.ʒən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English conclusioun, borrowed from Old French conclusion (“result, outcome”) and directly from Latin conclūsiō (“a shutting up, conclusion”),[2][3][4] a noun of action from the past participle of conclūdere (“to shut up, enclose”).[2][3] See conclude.[2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A judgement reached by reasoning, an inference: about 1340 in the OED, the late 14th century in Etymonline.[6][2]

Semantic evolution

The end or close of something is from 1382, and the final result or outcome from about 1384.[6] The last part of a speech or writing, which sums up its main points, is from about 1386, as is in conclusion.[6][2] A foregone conclusion is an outcome that is certain from the start.[7]

Timeline

  • c. 1340 – an inference.[6]
  • 1382 – the end.[6]
  • c. 1384 – a result.[6]
  • c. 1386 – the last part of a speech.[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. The end or last part of something.
  2. A judgment or opinion reached after thinking about something.
  3. The final part of a speech or essay, which sums it up.
  4. The settling of an agreement: the conclusion of a treaty.
  5. (logic) A statement that follows from the premises of an argument.

Word family

  • conclusional
  • conclusionally
  • conclusionary
  • nonconclusion
  • foregone conclusion
  • conclude
  • conclusive
  • exclusion
  • inclusion
  • close

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins