Synonyms of climactic

climactic

adjective

klī-ˈmak-tik 

as in apocalyptic

of, relating to, or being a major turning point

the French Revolution is usually regarded as one of the climactic events in modern European history

Synonyms & Similar Words

• apocalyptic
• pivotal
• critical
• highest
• decisive
• climacteric
• culminating
• crucial
• watershed
• high
• fateful
• crowning
• epochal
• life-and-death
• momentous
• apical
• meridian
• earthshaking
• crestal
• crossover
• payoff
• vital
• make-or-break
• apogean
• deciding
• cataclysmal
• go-no-go

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• trivial
• anticlimactic
• unimportant
• insignificant
• inconsequential
• indecisive
• noncritical

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of climactic

Eight years later, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon — a remarkable achievement that was the climactic moment of the Cold War space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 4 July 2026

One issue at play was the climactic fight, which was reconfigured. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 3 July 2026

Still, that climactic scene in the saga was dramatic enough to prompt a meeting Wednesday morning, and Waddell included director of player personnel Rick Nash in the discussion. — Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 2 July 2026

Angèle, the makeup artist, has been writing a real-life account of her observations at work, and her writings apostrophize the action, most extensively during a climactic scene in which the staging of the runway show falls prey to bad weather. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 27 June 2026