term

noun

That which limits the extent of anything; limit, extremity, bound, boundary, terminus.

A chronological limitation or restriction, a limited timespan.

Any of the binding conditions or promises in a legal contract.

Specifically, the conditions in a legal contract that specify the price and also how and when payment must be made.

A word or phrase (e.g., noun phrase, verb phrase, open compound), especially one from a specialised area of knowledge; a name for a concept.

Relations among people.

Part of a year, especially one of the divisions of an academic year.

Duration of officeholding, or its limit; period in office of fixed length.

The time during which legal courts are open.

Certain days on which rent is paid.

With respect to a pregnancy, the usual duration of gestation for the given species (for example, nine months in humans); (metonymic) the end of this duration: the timepoint at which birth usually happens (for example, in humans, approximately 40 weeks from conception), defining the due date.

(of a patent) The maximum period during which the patent can be maintained into force.

(mathematics) Any value (variable or constant) or expression separated from another term by a space or an appropriate character, in an overall expression or table.

(logic) The subject or the predicate of a proposition; one of the three component parts of a syllogism, each one of which is used twice.

(astrology) An essential dignity in which unequal segments of every astrological sign have internal rulerships which affect the power and integrity of each planet in a natal chart.

(art) A statue of the upper body, sometimes without the arms, ending in a pillar or pedestal.

(nautical) A piece of carved work placed under each end of the taffrail.

(computing, informal) A computer program that emulates a physical terminal.

One whose employment has been terminated

(geometry, archaic) A point, line, or superficies that limits.

(archaic) A menstrual period.

verb

(transitive) To phrase a certain way; to name or call.

(ambitransitive, informal) To terminate someone's employment.

(transitive, informal, of an online moderator) To delete someone's account.

adjective

(medicine, colloquial) Born or delivered at term.

Roots

terminusterm- · Latin · boundary, limit

Synonyms for term

phrasen wordn periodn durationn vocablen tenuren semestern terminusn trimestern sentencen

Synonyms & related words for term

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Words related to term

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Synonyms for term

Common synonyms for term include phrase, word, period, duration, vocable, tenure, semester, terminus — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does term come from?

The word term breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root term-, from Latin terminus (“boundary, limit”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.