climactic

[ klahy-mak-tik ]

adjective

1. pertaining to or coming to a climax:

   the climactic scene of a play.

climactic

/ klaɪˈmæktɪkəl; klaɪˈmæktɪk /

adjective

1. consisting of, involving, or causing a climax

Usage

See climate

Derived Forms

• cliˈmactically, adverb

Other Words From

• cli·macti·cal·ly adverb
• noncli·mactic adjective
• noncli·macti·cal adjective
• uncli·mactic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of climactic¹

1870–75; from climax, perhaps on model of syntax, syntactic

Example Sentences

“Guilty Conscience II,” the album’s climactic battle between Mathers and Slim, ends with a Frankenstein moment, banishing his creation with a bullet to the head.

From Salon

The evening’s highlight was expected to come later, when former President Obama is scheduled to give the climactic address to the delegates.

From Los Angeles Times

For the remainder of this month, the Dodgers will only play teams with winning records, which could make for an unusually intense August and climactic September.

From Los Angeles Times

At the end of season four his character appeared to escape from a climactic battle with Eleven, but not before opening a rift between the character's world and alternative dimension The Upside Down.

From BBC

By the time “Firebrand” reaches its climactic dramatic license about this survivor narrative, we should be better armed to relish it, instead of scratching our heads at a speculative swerve out of nowhere.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• crowning
• decisive
• vital

Climactic Vs. Climatic

What’s the difference between climactic and climatic?

Climactic is used to describe things that involve or feel like a climax—the culmination or most intense part of a story or situation. Climatic means relating to climate—the average atmospheric conditions that prevail in a given region over a long period of time—whether a place is generally cold and wet or hot and dry, for example.

Climactic is used in situations in which a peak of some kind is being reached, such as a climactic ending of a movie. The word anticlimactic is used—perhaps more commonly—to mean the opposite, such as when you expect something exciting to happen but it doesn’t.

Climatic is not all that commonly used, especially because it has a much more narrow meaning. It’s typically used in scientific contexts involving climate and weather.

You can keep their spellings straight by remembering that climactic comes from climax, so it needs that c in replacement of the x before the ending -tic. Climatic, on the other hand, is basically climate plus the -ic ending (with the e having been dropped).

Here’s an example of climactic and climatic used correctly in a sentence.

Example: Many people have failed to recognize the danger of the change in climatic conditions because the change has been a relatively gradual one, rather than a dramatic, climactic spike—but that may soon change.

Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between climactic and climatic.

Quiz yourself on climactic vs. climatic!

Should climactic or climatic be used in the following sentence?

Someone knocked on the door right when the movie had reached its _____ moment.