terminal
terminal — adjective
1. A terminal disease or illness is one for which there is no known cure and that w
A terminal disease or illness is one for which there is no known cure and that will eventually cause a person's death.
The doctor told Tariq that his mother's cancer was terminal and could not be treated.
collocation: terminal cancer
Sayaka's father was diagnosed with a terminal heart condition at the age of sixty-two.
collocation: terminal condition
Research into terminal illnesses has led to new treatments that help patients live longer.
A terminal diagnosis does not always mean the patient will die within weeks.
- curable
able to be treated successfully
文法句型
terminal + [noun: disease / illness / cancer]
用法筆記
This sense is almost always used before a noun (attributive position), typically modifying words such as disease, illness, cancer, or condition.
常見錯誤
2. A terminal patient or case is someone with a fatal condition who has entered the
A terminal patient or case is someone with a fatal condition who has entered the final phase of life and is expected to die soon.
The hospital has a special ward where terminal patients receive comfort and pain relief.
collocation: terminal patient
Ravindra volunteers at a hospice that cares for terminal cases from all over the region.
collocation: terminal case
Nurses who work with terminal patients often develop close bonds with the families.
The clinic offers counselling services to the families of terminal patients facing the end of life.
- dying
more general; does not specifically imply a diagnosed fatal disease
- recovering
getting better from an illness
文法句型
terminal + [noun: patient / case]
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1 (FATAL ILLNESS): sense 1 describes the disease itself, while sense 2 describes the person who has the disease. Terminal patient is frequently used in healthcare and hospice contexts.
常見錯誤
3. used informally to describe a situation, state, or quality that has reached the
used informally to describe a situation, state, or quality that has reached the most extreme or hopelessly severe level, especially in a negative way.
Aaron described the three-hour lecture as a case of terminal boredom.
collocation: terminal boredom
The company's financial problems were terminal, and it closed down within a year.
collocation: terminal [financial problems]
Felix called the speaker's decision an act of terminal stupidity.
The team's losing streak has reached terminal proportions this season.
- mild
slight or moderate in degree
文法句型
terminal + [abstract noun: boredom / stupidity / decline]
用法筆記
This sense is informal and often used for emphasis or exaggeration. It typically modifies abstract nouns describing negative qualities or situations and adds a tone of hopelessness.
4. relating to or forming the final part of a process, period, or series; situated
relating to or forming the final part of a process, period, or series; situated at the furthest point or boundary of something.
The train reached its terminal station just after midnight, and all the passengers got off.
collocation: terminal station
Students in the terminal year of the programme must complete a research project.
collocation: terminal year
The terminal bud at the tip of the stem grows faster than the buds on the sides.
Keiko reached the terminal stage of her training course and prepared for the final exam.
文法句型
terminal + [noun: point / stage / station]
用法筆記
This is the most general sense of terminal and can apply to physical endpoints (stations, tips) as well as temporal endpoints (stages, years). In botany, a terminal bud is the one at the very tip of a stem.
常見錯誤
terminal — noun
1. A large building at an airport, bus station, or train station where passengers a
A large building at an airport, bus station, or train station where passengers arrive, leave, or change their means of transport.
Mira arrived at the airport two hours early and waited in Terminal 3 for her flight.
Terminal + number
Passengers flying to Japan must check in at the international terminal, not the domestic one.
collocation: international / domestic terminal
Tomás took the shuttle bus from the train terminal to the convention centre downtown.
The new bus terminal has twelve platforms and a large waiting area with shops and cafés.
文法句型
the + [adjective] + terminal
Terminal + [number: 1 / 2 / 3]
用法筆記
In airports, terminals are often identified by numbers (Terminal 1, Terminal 2) or by the type of traffic they handle (domestic terminal, international terminal). In bus and train contexts, terminal can also refer to the station itself.
常見錯誤
2. A desktop station with a screen and keyboard, linked to a main computer so the u
A desktop station with a screen and keyboard, linked to a main computer so the user can type in or look up information.
Élise sat down at a computer terminal in the library to check her university email.
collocation: computer terminal
In the 1980s, office workers used dumb terminals that had no processing power of their own.
dumb terminal (historical computing term)
All the terminals in the lab were connected to a single mainframe computer on the lower floor.
The ticket clerk entered the booking details into a terminal behind the counter.
- workstation
usually a more powerful computer that can run applications locally
文法句型
computer terminal
dumb terminal
terminal + [verb: connect / access]
用法筆記
In modern computing, the term terminal is also used for software applications that emulate the old hardware terminals, providing a command-line interface to the operating system.
常見錯誤
3. A metal part on a battery, wire, or electrical device where electricity enters o
A metal part on a battery, wire, or electrical device where electricity enters or leaves by connecting to another circuit.
Lakan checked the battery terminals for rust before trying to start the car engine.
collocation: battery terminal
The positive terminal of the battery is usually marked with a plus sign.
collocation: positive / negative terminal
Anong carefully attached the red wire to the correct terminal on the circuit board.
Loose terminals can cause electrical faults and should be tightened with a screwdriver.
文法句型
terminal + [noun: screw / post]
[adjective] + terminal
用法筆記
Terminals often come in pairs: a positive terminal (+) and a negative terminal (−). The term is commonly used for car batteries, power supplies, and circuit boards.