encloses

Encloses is the third-person singular present tense of the verb enclose. It means to surround or close off on all sides, or to include something inside a boundary or container. Enclosing can be physical, as when a fence encloses a yard, a wall encloses a city, or a capsule encloses a specimen; it can also be figurative, such as rules that enclose a range of activities or a map that encloses multiple regions. The term is also used to describe the inclusion of materials with a document, such as a letter that encloses a check or an enclosure in historical manuscripts.

Etymology and usage notes: Enclose derives from Old French enclos, from en- “in” + clore “to close” (ultimately from Latin claudere “to close”). The modern verb enclose appeared in Middle English with senses of surrounding, enclosing physically or conceptually. Encloses, as the third-person singular present, is used when the subject performs the action.

Applications and contexts: In geography and biology, to enclose may describe a boundary around an area or a membrane around a cell or organ. In law and business, encloses can refer to documents or objects included with a letter or packet, often signaled by the noun enclosure or enclosures in correspondence. In information contexts, the term may appear in phrases like “the dataset encloses metadata,” though more common alternatives include contains or includes.