ended

1. 1
   verb

   Simple past and past participle of end.

   The meeting ended without any clear agreement.

   Their long friendship ended over a small misunderstanding.

   Note

   One spelling does two jobs: the simple past (the talks ended) and the participle after have or be. Because end works both ways, things end and people end things, the participle splits accordingly. The talks have ended uses the intransitive verb, while the talks were ended by the chair needs the transitive one, with someone bringing them to a close.

2. 2
   adjectivein compounds

   Having a specified kind or number of ends, as named by a preceding modifier.

   Engineers prefer a double-ended wrench for working in tight spaces.

   The treaty left several open-ended commitments that future leaders would have to interpret.

   Note

   An adjective that almost never stands alone: it needs a word in front, joined by a hyphen, as in double-ended or open-ended. It is not graded with more or most in this use. Some compounds keep the literal shape of a tool or rod. Others drift into metaphor: an open-ended commitment is one with no fixed point where it stops.

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