verb
I closed my eyes. Please close the door behind you
The Bodleian Library will be closed for a week
A brilliant flourish closes the first movement of the symphony
Union and management closed a deal, and the strike was called off
Competition from the supermarket forced the greengrocer to close down
This wing of the museum has been closed off temporarily
You have always closed your eyes to his faults
close up
It's time to close up for the night
We closed up ranks and stood at attention
adjective
He claims to have had a close encounter with an extraterrestrial. There certainly is a close resemblance between Kathy and her daughter
The hostages spent a month in close confinement
I could hardly read the close writing on the matchbox
They locked me in a room that was so close I could hardly breathe
It was a close race, but Flanagan won by a hair
Close analysis has revealed that the handwriting is that of a left-handed adult
They are a very close family. She and her father are very close
Although it should have been a close secret, the press managed to get hold of it
She is very close about the whereabouts of her husband
He's so close he charges his own mother rent
The fugitives decided to lie close till nightfall
adverb
The murder took place close to my house. I'm frightened, so please stay close by
For close to two thousand years the site lay untouched
noun
By the close of trading, share prices had risen again
US