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cliffhanger

cliffhanger

20 5.3
A story or event that leaves people in suspense and wanting to know what happens next
  • noun
  • /ˈklɪfˌhæŋər/
translation icon : final que deja en vilo
  • Fans were left in suspense after the season finale, which ended with a shocking cliffhanger.
  • season cliffhanger
  • cliffhanger ending
  • cliffhanger episode

And stick around to the end because the cliffhanger is intense.

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Examples

  • Yeah, the earnings call was left off with with a cliffhanger of what's next.

  • And stick around to the end because the cliffhanger is intense.

  • Yeah, I know, I left you all with a bit of a cliffhanger there for a while.

    Blog text (12)
  • But then, I heard it will be a cliffhanger, so I will have to wait until next September.

    Blog text (15)
  • And that is a perfect cliffhanger to conclude, conclude the conversation.

  • And actually this is the first time that I'm seeing someone since a cliffhanger of our season finale.

  • And despite revelation after revelation, they all end on a cliffhanger of some sort.

    Blog text (1)
  • Well, there's only one way to see how this cliffhanger will end.

  • Look, I'm just saying that the cliffhanger between Infinity War and End game is epic.

  • Personally, I find stories that end every single chapter in a cliffhanger a bit tiring.

    Blog text (2)

Synonyms

cliffhanging
vscliffhanger
4.7

A moment in a story that leaves people in suspense

is broader, naming an event, ending, or whole story causing audience uncertainty

How Suspenseful

nail-biter
  • Informal
7 5.2
cliffhanger
20 5.3
suspense
82 3.7
anticlimax
2 7.0

Surface Forms

cliffhanger singular
cliffhangers plural

Morphology

cliffhanger = cliff + hanger (semi-transparent) = cliff + hang + er

The compound literally evokes someone or something hanging from a cliff, but the idiomatic sense 'an ending that leaves the audience in suspense' is a metaphorical extension.

Etymology

The word cliffhanger comes from the image of a character hanging from a cliff at the end of a story, left there so the audience must wait. So a cliffhanger is an ending that leaves you in 'suspense' about what will happen next.