Synonyms of make-or-break

make-or-break

adjective

as in crucial

resulting in either definite success or definite failure

a make-or-break decision

The next year will be a make-or-break time for the company.

Related Words

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

Dissimilar Words

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of make-or-break

Breslow knows his job is on the line this year, and this deadline might be a make-or-break scenario. — Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 28 July 2026

In the realm of AI for mental health, harness engineering is especially vital and can make-or-break how well or badly an AI system responds to mental health considerations. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 25 July 2026

Not that the location is a make-or-break factor for the business. — Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 23 July 2026

Her comments come as Senate negotiators enter make-or-break talks to salvage bipartisan support for the legislation. — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 22 July 2026