culminate

Meanings

Verb

end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage
- "The meeting culminated in a tearful embrace"
bring to a head or to the highest point
- "Seurat culminated pointillism"
reach the highest or most decisive point
reach the highest altitude or the meridian, of a celestial body
rise to, or form, a summit
- "The helmet culminated in a crest"
Of a heavenly body, to be at the highest point, reach its greatest altitude.
To reach the (physical or figurative) summit, highest point, peak etc.
To reach a climax; to come to a decisive point, especially an end or conclusion.
To reach a point at which continued progress is not possible.
To finalize, bring to a conclusion, form the climax of.

Adj

Relating to the culmen.
Growing upward, as opposed to lateral growth.

Origin / Etymology

First attested in 1647; borrowed from Medieval Latin culminātus, perfect passive participle of culminō (“to crown”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from Latin culmen (“peak, the highest point”), older form columen (“top, summit”), from Proto-Italic *kolamen, from a Proto-Indo-European base *kol-, *kelH- (“to project, rise; peak, summit, top”), whence also English hill and holm.

Synonyms

climax, peak

Scrabble Score: 13

culminate is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
culminate is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
culminate is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 18

culminate is a valid Words With Friends word