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

cliff-hanging

ˈklif-ˌhaŋ-iŋ 

adjective

Synonyms

• hair-raiser
• nail-biter
• suspenser
• thriller

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

Things go very, very wrong at a Valentine’s Day party, which leads to the most intense cliff-hanger of the series. —Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2025

For Coben, showrunner Victoria Asare-Archer and the cast, the challenge was to balance those nail-biting cliff-hangers with character development and relationships that viewers could relate to. —K.j. Yossman, Variety, 1 Jan. 2025

Of course, that’s no surprise to anyone who has seen Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which, No. 1, absolutely rocks, and, No. 2 (no spoilers), ends on quite the cliff-hanger. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1931, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for cliff-hanger

• ganger
• hangar
• hanger