CULMINATING Synonyms: 46 Similar and Opposite Words

culminating 1 of 2

adjective

as in crowning

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Dissimilar Words

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

Prue built a following online with his viral series How to Piss Off Men, which amassed hundreds of millions of views across social platforms, culminating in a handbook that debuted as an instant New York Times Bestseller. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 29 Sep. 2026 Hyundai plans to deploy 25,000 Atlas units across its global Hyundai and Kia facilities over the coming years, culminating in full autonomous component assembly and heavy-load labor by 2030. — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026 Public outrage over the allegations in the lawsuit escalated over the weekend, culminating in the district attorney’s statement announcing the case would be reopened and sent to a grand jury. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 28 Sep. 2026 Sanon is also accused obtaining an arsenal of weapons, ammunition and ballistic vests, culminating in the dead-of-night operation coordinated by his allies to storm Moïse’s private residence. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2026 But the ritual has increasingly gotten out of hand, culminating with someone hurling a chair into the crowd during the group’s performance last week in Charlotte, North Carolina, and reportedly sending one fan to the hospital. — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 25 Sep. 2026 The need for guardrails in the college game is precisely why Congress has become a battleground for paying college athletes, culminating in the Save College Sports Act which has been hotly debated on both sides of the political aisle. — Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026 The Panic of 1837—perhaps the worst of them all—gave rise to a long series of marvelous psychoses culminating in Know-Nothingism, which flourished around a dozen years after the crash. — J. B. MacKinnon, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026 States geographically above Maryland began the process of immediately or gradually abolishing slavery, beginning with Vermont in 1777 and culminating with New York, the longest holdout, in 1799. — Sandra Slater, The Conversation, 21 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for culminating

Adjective

President Nelson Mandela presented the trophy to the home captain, Francois Pienaar, the crowning moment of a story that Clint Eastwood made into a Hollywood film, Invictus, in 2009.

— Daniel Gallan, New York Times, 10 Sep. 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

While finishing her new novel ‘American Hagwon,’ author Min Jin Lee traveled to Sydney to discover how the city may have shaped her fictional protagonists.

— Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Sep. 2026
Before finishing his first year, Thornton received a Thiel Fellowship and left MIT to focus full-time on his company.

— Preston Fore, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of finishing

Adjective

Their climactic scenes near the end, once all the obstacles have been removed, are lovely — and not just because Austen’s prose in their outcome is so indestructible.

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 21 Sep. 2026
In its concluding episodes, the HBO juggernaut thrust an unearned heel turn on its female lead, rendered its climactic battle so dark viewers couldn’t see it, and ended over 70 hours of buildup with a rando on the Iron Throne.

— Rafael Motamayor, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of climactic

Verb

After completing initial laboratory testing, the team aims to reduce voltage and fill-factor losses, refine current matching, and scale up device size for larger applications.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026
Paris Hilton brought head-to-toe silver sparkle to the awards show with a pair of custom Christian Louboutin boots completing her look.

— Jaden Thompson, Footwear News, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of completing

Adjective

And that merely seven months before a fateful presidential election which has the far right leading polls.

— Callum McLennan, Variety, 25 Sep. 2026
But his voice tyrannically resounds with sadistic orders and conservative cultural commentary during the second-act flashback scene, in which a fateful day on the set of the show changes the lives of Ronika and Blair.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of fateful

Verb

The sportswear giant announced the end of their relationship last month, concluding nearly two decades of sponsorship, which began when Mbappé was just nine years old.

— Joe Bobowicz, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026
Alyssa Lareau, who left the Civil Rights Division’s Federal Coordination and Compliance Section last year after concluding that anti-discrimination laws such as Title VI were no longer being faithfully enforced, was similarly torn.

— Eyal Press, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of concluding

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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“Culminating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/culminating. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of culminating

adjective

verb

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