as in thriller
something (as a close contest) that induces much suspense as to its outcome
finally, a Super Bowl game that turned out to be a real cliff-hanger
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Recent Examples of cliff-hanger
Angus Cloud, who played drug dealer Fezco, died after season two; the second season ended on a major cliff-hanger involving his character.
—
Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2025
For now, Mars keeps its secrets, and Bright Angel stays a cliff-hanger.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2025
Whether banger or ballad, her tracks make room for characters, settings, twists, a tidy ending, a cliff-hanger.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
The biggest key to the success of minidramas, though, is the cliff-hangers, which push viewers to keep paying for the next episode.
—Yixuan Tan, NBC news, 17 Aug. 2025
Which means there are some major cliff-hangers to obsess over for the next few weeks.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 11 Aug. 2025
All the elements are there, complete with potential cliff-hanger endings for each episode.
—Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025
Last week's show ended on a cliff-hanger, as the result of the latest banishment ceremony was unknown going into the season finale.
—David Wysong, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2025
For now, Mars keeps its secrets, and Bright Angel stays a cliff-hanger.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Sep. 2025
Whether banger or ballad, her tracks make room for characters, settings, twists, a tidy ending, a cliff-hanger.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
The biggest key to the success of minidramas, though, is the cliff-hangers, which push viewers to keep paying for the next episode.
—Yixuan Tan, NBC news, 17 Aug. 2025
Which means there are some major cliff-hangers to obsess over for the next few weeks.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 11 Aug. 2025
All the elements are there, complete with potential cliff-hanger endings for each episode.
—Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025
Last week's show ended on a cliff-hanger, as the result of the latest banishment ceremony was unknown going into the season finale.
—David Wysong, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cliff-hanger
thriller
Noun
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The Dodgers-Blue Jays thriller tied the record for the longest game in World Series history.—
Ryan Canfield,
FOXNews.com,
28 Oct. 2025
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Although not strictly a horror movie — its tone is more comparable to an erotic thriller like 1987's Fatal Attraction — this 1960 feature is a milestone of genre cinema and Korean movies as a whole.—
Katie Rife,
Entertainment Weekly,
28 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cliff-hanger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cliff-hanger. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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