climax
Americannoun
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the highest or most intense point in the development or resolution of something; culmination.
His career reached its climax when he was elected president.
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(in a dramatic or literary work) a decisive moment that is of maximum intensity or is a major turning point in a plot.
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Rhetoric.
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a figure consisting of a series of related ideas so arranged that each surpasses the preceding in force or intensity.
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the last term or member of this figure.
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an orgasm.
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Ecology. the stable and self-perpetuating end stage in the ecological succession or evolution of a plant and animal community.
verb (used with or without object)
noun
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the most intense or highest point of an experience or of a series of events
the party was the climax of the week
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a decisive moment in a dramatic or other work
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a rhetorical device by which a series of sentences, clauses, or phrases are arranged in order of increasing intensity
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ecology the stage in the development of a community during which it remains stable under the prevailing environmental conditions
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Also called: sexual climax. (esp in referring to women) another word for orgasm
verb
Usage
What does climax mean? A climax is the most intense, decisive point of something, especially in a story or film.
Other Word Forms
- hyperclimax noun
- unclimaxed adjective
Etymology
Origin of climax
First recorded in 1580–90; from Late Latin, from Greek klîmax “ladder,” akin to klī́nein “to lean”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"We start with the climax," explained actor An Chae-hee, who plays the female lead.
From BBC
The climax finds the main characters pursuing a preposterous plot to secure their futures through a desperate plan to steal government vouchers and bid for an oil company.
He was also one of Morocco's superstars during the Africa Cup of Nations, with the host team making it to the final where they lost in a chaotic climax to the tournament to Senegal.
From Barron's
They passed – and more tests will come for the Gunners and Manchester City as the Premier League pursuit reaches its climax.
From BBC
But stasis doesn’t make for much of a climax, and as the couple wait in the snowbound airport, the setting also functions as a metaphor for the film as a whole.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
