close down
Britishverb
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to cease or cause to cease operations
the shop closed down
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(tr) sport to mark or move towards (an opposing player) in order to prevent him or her running with the ball or making or receiving a pass
noun
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a closure or stoppage of operations, esp in a factory
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radio television the end of a period of broadcasting, esp late at night
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Also, close one's doors ; shut down . Go out of business, end operations. For example, If the rent goes up we'll have to close down , or After fifty years in business the store finally closed its doors , or The warehouse had a clearance sale the month before it shut down for good . Also see close up , def. 2.
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Force someone to go out of business, as in The police raided the porn shop and closed it down . Both usages date from the early 1900s, but shut down was first recorded in 1877.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
United’s stock closed down nearly 6% Thursday, joining several airlines that recorded their worst trading day in months as U.S.-Iran tensions drove oil prices higher.
From MarketWatch
"Defensively, it's a structure that closes down the midfield corridor, where there are more players, and allows us to be more compact," Arbeloa said.
From BBC
In Las Vegas: In “Jason Bourne,” an elaborate car chase involving some 200 vehicles closed down parts of the Las Vegas Strip overnight over two weeks of filming.
A judicious set of throws limited the Chinese to one in the eighth but GB closed down the ninth end, taking one to force a round of handshakes with an end to spare.
From BBC
Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.4%, notching the largest three-week point and percentage decline since the week ended Nov. 21, 2025, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
