finale
Americannoun
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the last piece, division, or movement of a concert, opera, or composition.
-
the concluding part of any performance, course of proceedings, etc.; end.
noun
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the concluding part of any performance or presentation
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the closing section or movement of a musical composition
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of finale
1715–25; < Italian, noun use of finale (adj.) < Latin fīnālis final
Explanation
If you decide to leave the theater early to beat traffic, you’ll miss the finale — the exciting final part of a theatrical performance. Perhaps to ensure that audience members stay until the end, many musical and theatrical pieces end with an elaborate flourish known as the finale. (If it’s truly spectacular, it might even be called a “grand finale.”) Appropriately, the pronunciation of finale contains a final flourish that you just can’t miss: the letter e, which you might expect to be silent, is pronounced. The last two syllables of finale rhyme with alley.
Vocabulary lists containing finale
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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Theater - Introductory
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Theater - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But by the time the season finale rolls around, Tom believes every old wives’ tale.
From Salon • Jun. 18, 2026
He started posting every episode of a TV season on YouTube except the finale, which he charged $3 to watch.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 16, 2026
There will be a nod to the 250th celebrations with historical "vignettes" between bouts, Axios reported, and there will also be military bands, a US military flyover and parachute display and a 10-minute fireworks finale.
From Barron's • Jun. 14, 2026
The finale saw his Doctor regenerate, and the episode closed with the surprise reintroduction of Billie Piper, who previously played Rose Tyler in the show.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
Seabiscuit was screaming to run, and the $10,000 San Juan Capistrano, the stakes finale of the Santa Anita winter meeting, was the perfect spot.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
