English

Verb

culminate ‎(third-person singular simple present culminates, present participle culminating, simple past and past participle culminated)

1. (intransitive, astronomy) Of a heavenly body, to be at the highest point, reach its greatest altitude.
2. (intransitive) To reach the (physical) summit, highest point, peak etc.
   • Milton

     As when his beams at noon / Culminate from the equator.

   • Dana

     The reptile race culminated in the secondary era.

   • Motley

     The house of Burgundy was rapidly culminating.

3. (intransitive) To reach a climax; to come to the decisive point (especially as an end or conclusion).

   Their messy breakup culminated in a restraining order.

   New York Times Mr. Bush has been marking the fifth anniversary of Sept. 11 with a series of speeches about terrorism that culminated with his televised address last night.

   The class will culminate with a rigorous examination.

4. (transitive) To finalize, bring to a conclusion, form the climax of.
   • 2010, "By the skin of her teeth", The Economist, 7 Sep 2010:

     The announcement by Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott in Canberra culminated more than a fortnight of intensive political horse-trading.

Synonyms

• peak

Related terms

• culm
• culminant
• culmination
• culminating
• culminated

Translations

External links

• culminate in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• culminate in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

Italian

Verb

culminate

1. second-person plural present indicative of culminare
2. second-person plural imperative of culminare