English
conclusion
Conclusion comes, via Middle English, from Old French conclusion, from Latin conclūsiō, from conclūdō ‘to conclude’ (con- + claudō).
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kleh₂w-1‘key, hook, nail’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEclaudō1‘to close’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconclūdō1‘to conclude’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconclūsiō1‘conclusion’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400conclusion1
- Englishearliest quotation 1598–1599conclusion1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English conclusion
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1598–1599, William Shakespeare: “[I]n her boſome Ile vnclaſpe my heart, / And…”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*(s)kleh₂w-Wiktionary, English conclusion‘key, hook, nail’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEclaudōWiktionary, English conclusion‘to close’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconclūdōWiktionary, English conclusion‘to conclude’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEconclūsiōWiktionary, English conclusion‘conclusion’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400conclusionWiktionary, English conclusion
- Englishearliest quotation 1598–1599conclusionWiktionary, English conclusion. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1598–1599, William Shakespeare: “[I]n her boſome Ile vnclaſpe my heart, / And…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kleh₂u- ‘key, hook, nail’
enclosure, enclave, clavicle, clef, clave, 9 more
through Latin claudō ‘to shut up, close, lock’
close, exclusive, closure, clause, exclude, inclusive, inclusion, preclude, cloister, sluice, recluse, claustrophobia, cloture, occlusion, 31 more
Today it means
noun The end, finish, close or last part of something.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “conclusion”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *(s)kleh₂w- / conclusion