culminating 1 of 2

adjective

as in crowning

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culminating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of culminate
as in finishing
to bring to a triumphant conclusion culminated the school year with a trip to New York

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of culminating
Verb
The movie charted the life and career of Valens, following him from his farm-working roots to chart-topping fame, and culminating in tragedy when the musician died in an infamous plane crash at 17 years old. — Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026 Likewise, the film rewards patience with an agonizingly tender culminating shot — a reminder that some things must change while others linger in the amber of childhood. — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 24 Aug. 2026 That privileged position looked in jeopardy as Assad’s enemy, Ahmed al-Sharaa, spearheaded a lightning offensive in late November 2024, culminating in the capture of Damascus by December 8. — Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2026 Kimmel and Damon then bicker over who has a rightful paternal claim to the child, culminating in a pitch-perfect spoof of Maury featuring Short as Povich. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Aug. 2026 The two-day event includes practices, qualifiers and warmups, culminating in the 250-mile race on Sunday afternoon. — Rachel Treisman, NPR, 20 Aug. 2026 Fernandes created four chances per game, more than any other player across Europe’s top five leagues, culminating in a record-breaking 21 Premier League assists. — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026 The United States’ Middle East order, too, had been decaying for years as policy and political failures accumulated, culminating in the loss of shared purpose and the military impotence revealed by the latest crises. — Marc Lynch, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026 Jiang’s era saw China’s economy charge ahead and open up to the world, culminating with the country joining the World Trade Organization – with US support – in 2001. — Sylvie Zhuang, CNN Money, 17 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for culminating
  1. crowning
  2. finishing
  3. climactic
  4. completing
  5. fateful
  6. concluding
  7. meridian
  8. climaxing
Adjective
  • That victory was the crowning moment of an extraordinary 2026 season.
    — Gemma Redrup, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
  • With the definition still under review, the GRAS rule proposed Monday is seen as a crowning achievement of Kennedy’s food agenda.
    — Sarah Owermohle, CNN Money, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of crowning
Verb
  • The Storm were just as bad from three-point range in the second half, finishing four of 22.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Messi scored eight goals in the recent World Cup, finishing second to France’s Kylian Mbappe in the Golden Boot race and was a big reason Argentina reached the championship match.
    — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of finishing
Adjective
  • The pilot’s mounting mysteries and climactic cliffhanger might have felt like promises of something shocking.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
  • But the band fury is as climactic as anything that could be done continuing to have the full ensemble play… and Dudamel looked happy enough to put his baton down, turn around and just watch the group play for a few minutes.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of climactic
Verb
  • The Ravens haven’t traditionally kept a third quarterback on the 53-man roster, but Fagnano starred throughout the preseason, completing 75 percent of his passes and throwing for 509 yards and three touchdowns.
    — Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The Appalachian Trail Conservancy defines a thru-hike as completing all of the trail’s sections in any order within a year, allowing for pauses.
    — Holly Ramer, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of completing
Adjective
  • Remarkably, after more than a 40-year interval, Tursi was able to track down one of the hostage takers to get his recollections of that fateful day.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Edgar, who was 17 at the time and is on trial as an adult, listened closely as the witnesses gave their testimony, juxtaposed by different angles of police and surveillance videos capturing those fateful minutes.
    — Cristóbal Reyes, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of fateful
Verb
  • Executive-produced by Shawn Carter (Jaÿ-Z) and Rubin, who also directs, two new episodes will debut on Mubi every Saturday, concluding with episodes seven and eight on Saturday, 10 October.
    — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Judge Buckelew has set the first week of October as his target to have a jury empaneled and begin opening statements, with broader sights on concluding the trial by Thanksgiving.
    — Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of concluding
Adjective
  • Back treatments address muscle tension while clearing meridian blockages.
    — Pooja Shah, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Definition of meridian
Verb
  • Bloody, disturbing, shocking, and entertaining as hell, the Ghost Ship opening couldn’t be any more different from the absolute slog that follows it, climaxing on a muddled and overly complicated ending.
    — Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 15 June 2026
  • The film’s first 40 minutes brings what feels like a continuous cut of increasingly bloody action, climaxing in the leveling of an entire town.
    — Alex Ritman, Variety, 17 May 2026
Definition of climaxing

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Cite this Entry

“Culminating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/culminating. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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