Close down meaning
Close down means to stop doing business for ever, used for shops, companies and factories. It can also mean to make a business or place stop working.
close down
close down · closed · closing
My favourite bookshop closed down last year.
Close down meanings and examples
2 meanings, each with its own CEFR level from Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries and the Cambridge Dictionary.
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1
Stop doing business for ever, used for shops, companies and factories
close down
- My favourite bookshop closed down last year.
- Lots of small cafés closed down during the pandemic.
- The factory won’t close down, the boss promised.
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2
Make a business or place stop working
close somebody or something down
- The city closed down the club after a fight.
- Health officials closed the restaurant down for a week.
- If sales don’t improve, they’ll close us down.
Café orders
New friends
At the airport
Slova
Use close down in real conversations
- Learn new words with picture cards
- Talk with Felix, an AI tutor, about the things you love
- Short lessons at your level, a few minutes a day
Is close down separable?
Close down often has no object: The shop closed down. When someone makes it happen, it is separable: close the shop down, close it down.
Close means shut for the night; close down usually means shut for ever. The shop closes at six is not the same as The shop closed down.
Verb tenses for close down
| Present | I close down · she closes down |
|---|---|
| Past | closed down |
| Present perfect | have closed down |
| -ing form | closing down |
Common mistakes with close down
What learners often say, and what to say instead.
Wrong: The bakery closes down at 6 pm every day.
Right: The bakery closes at 6 pm every day.
For daily hours, use close; close down means stop for ever.
Wrong: The police closed down it.
Right: The police closed it down.
A pronoun goes between close and down.
Wrong: The cinema has been closed down since years.
Right: The cinema has been closed down for years.
Use for with a length of time.
Synonyms and opposites of close down
Words close to it, and words that mean the opposite.
Similar
- shut downclose a business, or turn off a computer or machine
- go out of businessclose because there is no money
- wind upUK, close a company in a planned way
Close down quiz
Three quick questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.
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1Nobody went to the old cinema, so it ___.
A business closes down when it stops for ever.
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2Choose the right sentence.
For opening hours, just use close.
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3“The government closed down the website.” What happened?
Close something down means make it stop working.
Find your level
The phrasal verbs test adapts as you answer, from A2 to C1, and shows which ones you miss.
- put downB1place something you are holding on a table or the floor
- take downB2remove something from a wall or a high place, or take it apart
- come downA2move down to a lower place, towards the speaker
- go downB1become lower, like a price, a number or a temperature
- turn downB2say no to an offer, an invitation or a person
- break downB2stop working, used for cars and machines
- fall downB1drop to the ground from a standing position
- cut downB1eat, drink or use less of something
Close down FAQ
Questions people ask about close down.
What is the difference between close and close down?
Close is for normal hours: The bank closes at four. Close down means the business stops for ever: The bank branch closed down.
What is the difference between close down and shut down?
For businesses they mean the same. Shut down is also used for computers and machines: Shut down your laptop.
What does closing down sale mean?
It is a sale in a shop that will soon close for ever, so everything is cheap.
Use close down in real conversations
In Slova you learn new words with picture cards, then use them when you talk about the things you love. A few minutes a day, at your level.