cloture

1 of 2

noun

clo·​ture ˈklō-chər How to pronounce cloture (audio)
: the closing or limitation of debate in a legislative body especially by calling for a vote

cloture

2 of 2

verb

clotured; cloturing; clotures

transitive verb

: to close (debate) in a legislative body by cloture
Debate over the bill was short Tuesday evening. After an initial debate Tuesday afternoon, Senate Republicans clotured debate when the bill returned later in the day.—Brian Lyman

Examples of cloture in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
The Senate kicks off voting for the week with a cloture vote on a nomination. — Cate Martel, The Hill, 13 Apr. 2026 At least 60 senators must vote for cloture to end the filibuster. — George Petras, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025 No votes are currently scheduled, but the next step in finalizing the plan will likely be a vote on cloture on the motion to proceed. — CBS News, 31 Jan. 2026 The Senate also features the filibuster rule that requires 60 senators to invoke cloture and allow a bill to advance to a vote. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 27 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for cloture

Word History

Etymology

Noun

French clôture, literally, closure, alteration of Middle French closure

First Known Use

Noun

1871, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1886, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cloture was in 1871

Rhymes for cloture

See All Rhymes for cloture

Browse Nearby Words

clotty
cloture
clotweed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cloture.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cloture. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Legal Definition

cloture

noun
clo·​ture ˈklō-chər How to pronounce cloture (audio)
: the closing or limitation of debate in a legislative body especially by calling for a vote
cloture transitive verb
Etymology

Noun

French clôture, literally, closure

More from Merriam-Webster on cloture

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about cloture

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All