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Definition of cease verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

cease

verb
 
/siːs/
 
/siːs/
[intransitive, transitive] (formal)
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they cease
 
/siːs/
 
/siːs/
he / she / it ceases
 
/ˈsiːsɪz/
 
/ˈsiːsɪz/
past simple ceased
 
/siːst/
 
/siːst/
past participle ceased
 
/siːst/
 
/siːst/
-ing form ceasing
 
/ˈsiːsɪŋ/
 
/ˈsiːsɪŋ/
Idioms
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  1. to stop happening or existing; to stop something from happening or existing
    • Welfare payments cease as soon as an individual starts a job.
    • cease to do something You never cease to amaze me!
    • cease something They voted to cease strike action immediately.
    • He ordered his men to cease fire (= stop shooting).
    • cease doing something The company ceased trading in June.
    see also cessation
    Extra Examples
    • Building ceased with the outbreak of war.
    • My job had effectively ceased to exist.
    • It rained all day without ceasing.
    • The bird's song ceased abruptly.
    • The conversation had long ceased to interest me.
    • The company has now ceased production of the toys.
    • The factory will cease operations this autumn.
    • The flow slowed, then ceased altogether.
    • The noise faded, then ceased altogether.
    • These violations of the code must cease forthwith.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • altogether
    • completely
    • entirely
    preposition
    • with
    See full entry
    Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French cesser, from Latin cessare ‘stop’, from cedere ‘to yield’.
Idioms
wonders will never cease
  1. (informal, usually ironic) a phrase used to express surprise and pleasure at something
    • ‘I've cleaned my room.’ ‘Wonders will never cease!’
See cease in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee cease in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English

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