DÉNOUEMENT Definition & Meaning

View synonyms for

denouement

Or ��é·�Դǳܱ�·��Գ�

[dey-noo-mahn]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

the final resolution of the intricacies of a plot, as of a drama or novel.
the place in the plot at which this occurs.
the outcome or resolution of a doubtful series of occurrences.
Synonyms: , , ,

denouement

/ deɪˈnuːmɒn, denumɑ̃ /

noun

1. the final clarification or resolution of a plot in a play or other work
2. the point at which this occurs
final outcome; solution

��é�Դǳܱ𳾱�Գ�

The solution or outcome of the plot of a play or novel: “In the ��é�Դǳܱ𳾱�Գ� of many tragedies, the main character �徱��.”

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of ��é�Դǳܱ𳾱�Գ�¹

First recorded in 1745–55; from French: literally, “an untying,” equivalent to ��é�Դǳܱ�� “to untie,” Old French desnoer ( des- + noer “to knot,” from Latin ��ō��, derivative of ��ō��ܲ� “knot”) + -ment; de-, -ment

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of ��é�Դǳܱ𳾱�Գ�¹

C18: from French, literally: an untying, from ��é�Դǳܱ�� to untie, from Old French desnoer, from des- _de- + noer to tie, knot, from Latin ��ō��, from ��ō��ܲ� a knot; see _node

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A stray orange cat; a séance in a hostel; a “nearsighted galoot” who decodes cryptic messages from Radio Pyongyang; flashlights that aren’t just flashlights — these bread crumbs guide us to the novel’s denouement.

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The magic of the Cup rarely stretches to the denouement.

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His grand denouement is meant to be a catharsis for a deliberately corrective slice of emotional history.

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Leslie traces Lennon and McCartney’s friendship from its wide-eyed, teenaged origins through its tragic denouement.

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Two years on at Augusta he led by four shots going into the final round, only to shoot 80 in a scarring denouement.

From

Related 51�Թ�s

climax��
culmination��
finale��

denotive denounce

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