Adjacent Words

Climax definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CLIMAX, n.
1. Gradation; ascent; a figure of rhetoric, in which a sentence rises as it were, step by step; or in which the expression which ends one member of the period, begins the second, and so on, till the period is finished; as in the following: When we have practiced good actions a while, they become easy; and when they are easy, we begin to take pleasure in them; and when they please us, we do them frequently; and by frequency of acts, they grow into a habit.
2. A sentence, or series of sentences, in which the successive members or sentences rise in force, importance or dignity, to the close of the sentence or series.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the highest point of anything conceived of as growing or developing or unfolding; "the climax of the artist's career"; "in the flood tide of his success" [syn: climax, flood tide]
2: the decisive moment in a novel or play; "the deathbed scene is the climax of the play" [syn: climax, culmination]
3: the moment of most intense pleasure in sexual intercourse [syn: orgasm, climax, sexual climax, coming]
4: the most severe stage of a disease
5: arrangement of clauses in ascending order of forcefulness v
1: end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage; "The meeting culminated in a tearful embrace" [syn: culminate, climax]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Late Latin, from Greek klimax, literally, ladder, from klinein to lean Date: circa 1550 1. a figure of speech in which a series of phrases or sentences is arranged in ascending order of rhetorical forcefulness 2. a. the highest point ; culmination <the climax of a distinguished career> b. the point of highest dramatic tension or a major turning point in the action (as of a play) c. orgasm d. menopause 3. a relatively stable ecological stage or community especially of plants that is achieved through successful adaptation to an environment; especially the final stage in ecological succession Synonyms: see summit • climaxless adjective II. verb Date: 1835 transitive verb to bring to a climax <climaxed his boxing career with a knockout> intransitive verb to come to a climax <a riot climaxing in the destruction of several houses>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 the event or point of greatest intensity or interest; a culmination or apex. 2 a sexual orgasm. 3 Rhet. a a series arranged in order of increasing importance etc. b the last term in such a series. 4 Ecol. a state of equilibrium reached by a plant community. --v.tr. & intr. colloq. bring or come to a climax. Etymology: LL f. Gk klimax -akos ladder, climax

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Climax Cli"max, n. [L., from Gr. ? ladder, staircase, fr. ? to make to bend, to lean. See Ladder, Lean, v. i.] 1. Upward movement; steady increase; gradation; ascent. --Glanvill. 2. (Rhet.) A figure in which the parts of a sentence or paragraph are so arranged that each succeeding one rises above its predecessor in impressiveness. ``Tribulation worketh patience, patience experience, and experience hope'' -- a happy climax. --J. D. Forbes. 3. The highest point; the greatest degree. We must look higher for the climax of earthly good. --I. Taylor.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(climaxes, climaxing, climaxed) 1. The climax of something is the most exciting or important moment in it, usually near the end. For Pritchard, reaching an Olympics was the climax of her career... It was the climax to 24 hours of growing anxiety... The last golf tournament of the European season is building up to a dramatic climax. N-COUNT: oft N of/to n 2. The event that climaxes a sequence of events is an exciting or important event that comes at the end. You can also say that a sequence of events climaxes with a particular event. (JOURNALISM) The demonstration climaxed two weeks of strikes... They've just finished a sell-out UK tour that climaxed with a three-night stint at Brixton Academy. VERB: V n, V with n 3. A climax is an orgasm. N-VAR 4. When someone climaxes, they have an orgasm. Often, a man can enjoy making love but may not be sufficiently aroused to climax. VERB: V

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Gradual culmination, successive increase of effect. 2. Acme, culmination, top, summit.

Moby Thesaurus

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