cliff-hanger
noun
cliff-hang·er
ˈklif-ˌhaŋ-ər 
1
: an adventure serial or melodrama
especially
: one presented in installments each ending in suspense
2
: a contest whose outcome is in doubt up to the very end
broadly
: a suspenseful situation
Examples of cliff-hanger in a Sentence
finally, a Super Bowl game that turned out to be a real cliff-hanger
Recent Examples on the Web
The first half of season four ended with several cliff-hangers for the Pogues, many of which should be resolved, to some degree, in the second half of the season.
—
Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Nov. 2024
Season 2, which picks up immediately after the London car bombing that left fans on a cliff-hanger a year and a half ago, is more focused in a literal sense: The episode count has been trimmed to just six.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 30 Oct. 2024
Fans have been clamoring for the new season ever since the 3rd season ended with a cliff-hanger, with emotions running high between Brunson’s Janine and Williams’ Gregory characters.
Watch the trailer for the new season and look through the teaser pictures above.
—Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 4 Oct. 2024
To stay in the moment long enough to appreciate the feel of paper pages and a cliff-hanger chapter?
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Sep. 2024
Noah Lyles’ performance in the men’s 100-meter sprint Sunday night was the race seen around the world – a cliff-hanger that came down to five-thousandths of a second.
—Ira Porter, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Then, the race turned into a cliff-hanger.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2024
Last week's episode ended on quite the cliff-hanger.
—Journal Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2024
Meanwhile, the future of the region’s lone rail line is, literally, a cliff-hanger.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2024
Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Nov. 2024
Season 2, which picks up immediately after the London car bombing that left fans on a cliff-hanger a year and a half ago, is more focused in a literal sense: The episode count has been trimmed to just six.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 30 Oct. 2024
Fans have been clamoring for the new season ever since the 3rd season ended with a cliff-hanger, with emotions running high between Brunson’s Janine and Williams’ Gregory characters.
Watch the trailer for the new season and look through the teaser pictures above.
—Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 4 Oct. 2024
To stay in the moment long enough to appreciate the feel of paper pages and a cliff-hanger chapter?
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Sep. 2024
Noah Lyles’ performance in the men’s 100-meter sprint Sunday night was the race seen around the world – a cliff-hanger that came down to five-thousandths of a second.
—Ira Porter, The Christian Science Monitor, 5 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Then, the race turned into a cliff-hanger.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2024
Last week's episode ended on quite the cliff-hanger.
—Journal Sentinel, 26 Mar. 2024
Meanwhile, the future of the region’s lone rail line is, literally, a cliff-hanger.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cliff-hanger.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Cliff-hanger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cliff-hanger. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
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