1
a
: lacking opportunities especially for advancement
a dead-end job
b
: lacking an exit
a dead-end street
2
: unruly
dead-end kids
dead-ended; dead-ending; dead-ends
: to come to a dead end : terminate
the road dead-ends at the lake
the investigation dead-ended
1
: an end (as of a street) without an exit
2
: a position, situation, or course of action that leads to nothing further
Examples of dead-end in a Sentence
Verb
after several fruitless years, the research seems to have simply dead-ended
Noun
We came to a dead end and had to turn around.
My career has hit a dead end.
Recent Examples on the Web
Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2025
Resenting someone for not choosing your viewpoint is a dead-end road.
—Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Tim Pitt, Robb Report, 15 Mar. 2023
Commissioner Andrew Brink said without a street connection to the east, the roundabout effectively will dead-end within the development.
—Stacy Ryburn, Arkansas Online, 14 Mar. 2023
Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025
Which is not to say that good vs. evil is a dramatic dead end.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dead-end
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Adjective
The billionaire hedge funder just won approval from the West Palm Beach City Commission to acquire a portion of Essex Court, a slender, dead-end lane in Southend—also known as the Soso neighborhood—for $220,000, Realtor.com reported.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2025
Resenting someone for not choosing your viewpoint is a dead-end road.
—Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025
Verb
Where any normal car would need a three-point turn (down yet another dead-end Camden side street, for instance), the taxi simply spins around and goes.
—Tim Pitt, Robb Report, 15 Mar. 2023
Commissioner Andrew Brink said without a street connection to the east, the roundabout effectively will dead-end within the development.
—Stacy Ryburn, Arkansas Online, 14 Mar. 2023
Noun
Hillcrest Road south of Franklin Avenue to dead end.
—Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025
Which is not to say that good vs. evil is a dramatic dead end.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dead-end
Cite this Entry
“Dead-end.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dead-end. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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