foreclose

/fɔrˈkloʊz/
verb
  1. To take possession of a property because the owner has failed to make mortgage payments.
    • If you cannot pay your mortgage, the bank may foreclose on your property.
    • The bank decided to foreclose on the house after the family missed six months of payments.
    • Many homeowners lost their homes when the lender moved to foreclose during the recession.
  2. To prevent something from happening or to make it impossible; to exclude or rule out.
    • A lack of funding could foreclose any chance of expanding the program.
    • The agreement forecloses any future legal action against the company.
    • The new evidence did not foreclose the possibility that the suspect was innocent.
Antonyms