as in epilogue
a dull or disappointing ending or result
The last chapter of the book was an anticlimax.
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Recent Examples of anticlimax
The anticlimax preemptively lowers the stakes of this new conflict, though Linklater makes for a gleefully sinister blank slate.
—
Alison Herman, Variety, 15 Sep. 2025
This Is Spinal Tap was an almost-clinical study in anticlimax, in rock-and-roll humiliation.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 12 Sep. 2025
Still, in the warped logic of conspiracy culture, that anticlimax didn’t kill the narrative.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 15 July 2025
Not that anyone really said that in the two-and-a-half-hour community-board meeting, which ended — unsurprisingly — in an anticlimax.
—Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for anticlimax
Alison Herman, Variety, 15 Sep. 2025
This Is Spinal Tap was an almost-clinical study in anticlimax, in rock-and-roll humiliation.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 12 Sep. 2025
Still, in the warped logic of conspiracy culture, that anticlimax didn’t kill the narrative.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 15 July 2025
Not that anyone really said that in the two-and-a-half-hour community-board meeting, which ended — unsurprisingly — in an anticlimax.
—Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for anticlimax
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anticlimax
epilogue
Noun
-
Blooper reels, once common in comedy films, are fading from cinema partly due to the rise of dramatic post-credit epilogues and the shift from DVDs to streaming platforms, experts say.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
30 Mar. 2026
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Even in light of new information, Mark is not quite ready to pitch Netflix on an epilogue episode — not yet.—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Anticlimax.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anticlimax. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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