cease

From Middle English cesen, cessen, from Middle French cesser (“to cease”), from Latin cessō (“leave off”), frequentative of cēdō (“to leave off, go away”).

• IPA^(key): /siːs/

• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -iːs

cease (third-person singular simple present ceases, present participle ceasing, simple past and past participle ceased)

1. (formal, intransitive) To stop.

   And with that, his twitching ceased.

2. (formal, transitive) To stop doing (something).

   And with that, he ceased twitching.

3. (obsolete, intransitive) To be wanting; to fail; to pass away.
   • Bible, Deuteronomy xv. 11

     The poor shall never cease out of the land.

• (to stop): discontinue, hold, terminate; See also Thesaurus:end or Thesaurus:stop
• (to stop doing): arrest; discontinue; See also Thesaurus:desist
• (to be wanting): desert, lack

• cease and desist
• cease-fire
• ceaseless

• cessation

cease

1. (obsolete) Cessation; extinction.
   • Shakespeare

     the cease of majesty

• escae