What does clotured mean?
"Clotured" is the past tense of "cloture," the formal mechanism by which debate on a legislative measure is brought to an end — most famously under Rule XXII of the United States Senate. Because Senate rules place virtually no limit on how long a senator may speak, opponents of a bill can mount a filibuster, delaying action indefinitely. Invoking cloture breaks that deadlock, but it demands a three-fifths supermajority, conventionally sixty votes, which makes the word a shorthand in political journalism for overcoming obstruction. When the Senate has "clotured" a bill or nomination, debate has been cut off and the chamber proceeds toward a final vote. The term derives from the French "clôture" (closing) and stands apart from the British parliamentary equivalent, "closure." Almost entirely confined to American political discourse, "clotured" carries a formal register and appears chiefly in news coverage, congressional records, and analysis of Senate procedure rather than everyday speech.
verb (past tense and past participle of "cloture")"Clotured" is the past tense of "cloture," meaning to have ended debate on a legislative measure by invoking the cloture rule, most notably in the United States Senate, where it requires a three-fifths supermajority (typically 60 votes). It marks the formal termination of a filibuster so that a vote on the bill itself can proceed.
- To have ended debate on a legislative measure by formally invoking the cloture rule, thereby cutting off further discussion or filibuster.
"The Senate clotured the nomination on Thursday, clearing the way for a final confirmation vote the next morning."
"The Senate clotured the civil rights bill after weeks of record-breaking debate."
"Once the motion was clotured, amendments could no longer be offered and the chamber moved to a final vote."
In the U.S. Senate, a single determined minority can talk a bill to death — but 'clotured' is the word that signals the talking has finally stopped.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of clotured
"Cloture" was borrowed in the mid-19th century from French "clôture," meaning a closing or enclosure, which itself descends from Latin "clausura" (a shutting up), from "claudere" (to shut). The term entered American legislative usage when the Senate adopted its debate-limiting rule in 1917, adopting the French-flavored word already used for the British concept's continental counterpart. It shares its Latin root with words such as "closure," "seclusion," and "recluse." The past tense "clotured" follows standard English inflection of this borrowed verb.
Related word forms
How clotured is actually used
"Clotured" is used almost exclusively in American legislative and political-journalism contexts, particularly regarding the U.S. Senate. It is a formal term rarely heard in everyday conversation; outside the United States, especially in Britain, the equivalent concept is called "closure." The verb typically appears in passive or reporting constructions describing Senate proceedings.
Easily confused with clotured
"Closure" is the general British parliamentary term for ending debate, while "cloture" is the specifically American term — "clotured" is its past tense, not an alternative spelling of "closed."