To close or shut tightly; to enclose or confine.
From be- prefix plus close. Close comes from Old French clos, from Latin clausus meaning 'shut' or 'closed.' The be- prefix adds intensification or the sense of 'to make' or 'to surround with closure.'
This word demonstrates a fun linguistic fact: close can be pronounced two ways! As a verb it's /kloʊz/ (like 'I close the door'), but as an adjective it's /kloʊs/ (like 'we are close friends'). The different pronunciations actually come from different sound changes in English history!
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