/ fɔːˈkləʊz; NAmE fɔːrˈkloʊz/ verb
1.
[ v , vn ] foreclose (on sb/sth) ( finance ) ( especially of a bank ) to take control of sb's property because they have not paid back money that they borrowed to buy it
2.
[ vn ] ( formal ) to reject sth as a possibility
SYN exclude
••
WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French forclos , past participle of forclore , from for- out (from Latin foras outside) + clore to close. The original sense was bar from escaping , in late Middle English shut out , and bar from doing something (sense 2), hence specifically bar someone from redeeming a mortgage (sense 1, early 18th cent.).