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Terminal vs Initial - What's the difference?

terminal | initial |

As nouns the difference between terminal and initial

is that terminal is a building in an airport where passengers transfer from ground transportation to the facilities that allow them to board airplanes while initial is the first letter of a word or a name.

As adjectives the difference between terminal and initial

is that terminal is (illness) fatal; resulting in death while initial is chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to the beginning, cause or origin.

As a verb initial is

to sign one's initial(s), as an abbreviated signature.

terminal

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • A building in an airport where passengers transfer from ground transportation to the facilities that allow them to board airplanes.
  • A rail station where service begins and ends; the end of the line. For example: Grand Central Terminal in New York City.
  • In electronics, the end of a line where signals are either transmitted or received, or a point along the length of a line where the signals are made available to apparatus.
  • An electric contact on a battery.
  • In telecommunications, the apparatus to send and/or receive signals on a line, such as a telephone or network device.
  • (computing) In the context of computer hardware, a device for entering data into a computer or a communications system and/or displaying data received, especially a device equipped with a keyboard and some sort of textual display.
  • (computing) A computer program that emulates a terminal (6).
  • (computing theory) A terminal symbol in a formal grammar.
  • Adjective

    (-)
  • (illness) Fatal; resulting in death.
  • (example) terminal cancer
  • Appearing at the end; top or apex of a physical object.
  • Occurring at the end of a word, sentence, or period of time.
  • Synonyms

    * (appearing at the end) final, late

    Antonyms

    * (l) * (illness) early * (appearing at the end) initial, early

    Anagrams

    * ----

    initial

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Chronologically first, early; of or pertaining to the beginning, cause or origin.
  • :
  • :
  • *{{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
  • , chapter=19 citation , passage=Meanwhile Nanny Broome was recovering from her initial panic and seemed anxious to make up for any kudos she might have lost, by exerting her personality to the utmost. She took the policeman's helmet and placed it on a chair, and unfolded his tunic to shake it and fold it up again for him.}}
  • Spatially first, placed at the beginning, in the first position; especially said of the first letter of a word.
  • :
  • *
  • *:Thus, when he drew up instructions in lawyer language, he expressed the important words by an initial , a medial, or a final consonant, and made scratches for all the words between; his clerks, however, understood him very well.
  • Synonyms

    * incipient * opening

    Antonyms

    * final

    Derived terms

    * initially * initialness

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • The first letter of a word or a name.
  • In plural, the first letter of each word of a person's full name considered as a unit
  • You can get your initials printed at the top.
  • (typesetting, calligraphy) A distinguished initial letter of a chapter or section of a document.
  • (phonology) onset, part of a syllable that precedes the syllable nucleus in phonetics and phonology.
  • Synonyms

    * drop cap, versal

    Derived terms

    * initialism * initial teaching alphabet

    Verb

  • To sign one's initial(s), as an abbreviated signature.
  • Please initial each page and sign the contract in full at the bottom.

    See also

    * middle