cliffhanger

or cliff-hang·er

[ klif-hang-er ]

/ ˈklɪfˌhæŋ ər /

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See synonyms for cliffhanger on Thesaurus.com

noun

a melodramatic or adventure serial in which each installment ends in suspense in order to interest the reader or viewer in the next installment.

a single installment in such a serial.

a suspenseful movie, novel, etc.

the suspenseful ending itself.

a situation or contest of which the outcome is suspensefully uncertain up to the very last moment: The game was a cliffhanger, but our team finally won.

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Origin of cliffhanger

An Americanism dating back to 1935–40

Words nearby cliffhanger

Clifden nonpareil, cliff, cliff brake, cliff dweller, cliff-hang, cliffhanger, cliff-hanging, Clifford, Clifford trust, Cliffside Park, Cliffs Notes

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cliffhanger in a sentence

It’s also simply a twisty, fast-paced, action-packed show whose episodes end in killer cliffhangers—in other words, the ultimate binge bait.
The 5 Best New TV Shows Our Critic Watched in September 2021|Judy Berman|September 30, 2021|Time
Read moreThe crucial ballots that ended slavery in MarylandThe vote was a cliffhanger, and in the end, 375 absentee ballots cast by soldiers made the difference.
The joy of Juneteenth: America’s long and uneven march from slavery to freedom|Gillian Brockell, Kate Rabinowitz, Frank Hulley-Jones|June 17, 2021|Washington Post
Part one of Lupin ended with a cliffhanger, and part two begins in the immediate aftermath.
What to Know About the Literary Origins of Netflix’s Buzzy Crime Drama Lupin|Annabel Gutterman|June 11, 2021|Time
A cliffhanger that could’ve been resolved within the first episode of Part 2 instead takes twice as long to wrap up.
If TV Is the New Film, We Need More Shows Like Lupin|Judy Berman|June 10, 2021|Time

Sometimes the McDonald’s commercials of the ’80s had entire narrative arcs, with recurring characters and cliffhangers.
The McDonald’s Commercials That Live in Our Minds, Rent Free|MM Carrigan|December 18, 2020|Eater
Why not finish hard on a cliffhanger and the next one just jump straight back in?
‘No Regrets’: Peter Jackson Says Goodbye to Middle-Earth|Alex Suskind|December 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We hit the ground running after an end-of-season cliffhanger.
Andrew Lincoln Wants Rick to End With Johnny Cash and the Sunset|Melissa Leon|October 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
What a monumental cliffhanger to get us excited for the last episode.
Inside ‘Orange Is the New Black’ S2, Eps. 6-12: About That Shocking Incest Scene|Kevin Fallon, Marlow Stern|June 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And, maddeningly, “A” ended on a cliffhanger, just as a potentially explosive confrontation was about to go down.
‘The Walking Dead’ Season Finale Review of ‘A’: Rick Grimes Is a Murderer|Melissa Leon|March 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The best thing to happen to it was the aborting of the third season, which effectively ended the series in a cliffhanger.
‘True Detective,’ Obsessive-Compulsive Noir, and ‘Twin Peaks’|Jimmy So|March 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for cliffhanger

cliffhanger

/ (ˈklɪfˌhæŋə) /

noun

a situation of imminent disaster usually occurring at the end of each episode of a serialized film
the serialized film itself

a situation that is dramatic or uncertain

Derived forms of cliffhanger

cliffhanging, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

cliffhanger

or cliff-hang·er

Origin of cliffhanger

Words nearby cliffhanger

Words related to cliffhanger

How to use cliffhanger in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cliffhanger

Derived forms of cliffhanger