1. A final climactic stage
   "their achievements stand as a culmination of centuries of development";
   - apogee
    
2. A concluding action
   "The culmination of the project took longer than expected";
   - completion, closing, windup, mop up
    
3. The decisive moment in a novel or play
   "the deathbed scene is the culmination of the play";
   - climax
    
4. (astronomy) a heavenly body's highest celestial point above an observer's horizon
   "The star reached its culmination at midnight"

Derived forms: culminations

Type of: celestial point, conclusion, ending, instant, minute, moment, phase, second, stage, termination

Part of: story

Encyclopedia: Culmination