show-stopper

or show·stop·per

[ shoh-stop-er ]

noun
  1. Theater. a performer, performance, or musical number that wins enthusiastic or prolonged applause: The singer proves that she is simply a show-stopper after her resoundingly successful debut.

  2. a spectacularly arresting or appealing person or thing: This bright plaid suit is a real show-stopper.

  1. a significant obstacle or problem, especially one halting a process already underway: The bug was a show-stopper, delaying the game's release by months.

Origin of show-stopper

1
First recorded in 1945–50

Other words from show-stopper

  • show-stop·ping, show·stop·ping, adjective

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

How to use show-stopper in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for show stopper

show stopper

noun
  1. informal a stage act, etc, that receives so much applause as to interrupt the performance

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