verb · transitive · rare

culminate

culminate · culminates · culminated · culminating

kulminieren, gipfeln

Of a heavenly body, to be at the highest point, reach its greatest altitudeOf a heavenly body, to be at the highest point, reach its greatest altitude.

ⓘ

UK/ˈkʌl.mɪ.neɪt/US/ˈkʌl.məˌneɪt/

» His career culminated in the presidency.

Seine Karriere gipfelte in der Präsidentschaft.

Der Höhepunkt seiner Karriere war die Präsidentschaft.

Meaning

5 senses

(intransitive)Of a heavenly body, to be at the highest point, reach its greatest altitude.
kulminieren
reach the highest altitude or the meridian, of a celestial body
(intransitive)To reach the (physical or figurative) summit, highest point, peak etc.
The tower culminates in a point.
gipfeln
reach the highest or most decisive point
(figuratively, intransitive)To reach a climax; to come to a decisive point, especially an end or conclusion.
Their messy breakup culminated in a restraining order.
The class will culminate with a rigorous examination.
kulminieren
end, especially to reach a final or climactic stage
(US)To reach a point at which continued progress is not possible.
(transitive)To finalize, bring to a conclusion, form the climax of.

Examples

15 sentences

His career culminated in the presidency.
deSeine Karriere gipfelte in der Präsidentschaft. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · frpzzd · C1Open on Tatoeba Report a problem
All her efforts culminated in failure.
ruВсе её усилия закончились неудачей. — Gruzilkin
deAlle ihre Anstrengungen verliefen im Sande. — xtofu80
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · C1Open on Tatoeba Report a problem
The festival culminates in a parade.
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · IMer · C2Open on Tatoeba Report a problem
The project will culminate next month.
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · IMer · C2Open on Tatoeba Report a problem
The argument culminated in a fight.
CC BY 2.0 FR · Tatoeba · IMer · C1Open on Tatoeba Report a problem

Translations

5 languages

Deutsch

By meaning 2

astronomy: to reach greatest altitude:

to reach the summit, highest point, peak (level) etc.:

Origin

First attested in 1647; borrowed from Medieval Latin culminātus, perfect passive participl

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, highest point”, oblique stem culmin-) + -ō (verb-forming suffix), 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.

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