terminal

The word “terminal” means a building where passengers board or leave planes, trains, or ferries. In plain terms, a place or point marking the end of something — an airport building, a computer screen, an electrical connector, or (as an adjective) fatal.

“Terminal” is pronounced TMIH-nuhl (/ˈtɚmɪnəl/ in IPA).

Here is “terminal” used in a sentence: “Flight 204 departs from Terminal 2.”

The opposite of “terminal” — its antonyms — are non-terminal, early and initial.

Depending on how it is used, “terminal” can be a noun and an adjective.

The word “terminal” comes from Latin. From Latin terminalis, "pertaining to a boundary or end," from terminus, "a limit.".

“Terminal” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

“Terminal” has 5 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a building where passengers board or leave planes, trains, or ferries.

A terminal is usually the endpoint of a route, the building where passengers finally board or leave planes, trains, or ferries, while a station can be any stop along a line. Airports use "terminal" for their passenger buildings, whereas railways use both, often reserving "terminal" for the end of the line.

A terminal is the whole building where passengers check in, pass security, and wait, while a gate is a single doorway within that terminal where you actually board the plane. A large airport has several terminals, each containing many gates.

"Terminal" has both meanings: it can be a building where passengers board or leave planes, trains, or ferries, or a device with a screen and keyboard used to enter and view data on a computer or network. Context makes the meaning clear, as in "airport terminal" versus "computer terminal."

A bus terminal is the passenger-facing building where people board and leave buses, whereas a depot is mainly where buses are parked, stored, and maintained. Some depots also handle passengers, but "terminal" specifically emphasizes the boarding function.