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Vinony

cliffhanger

noun

  1. plot device in which dramatic tension is left unresolved at the end of an episode of serialized fiction to entice the audience to return
L318181 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˌklɪfˈhæŋ.ə(ɹ)/

noun

Etymology: From cliff + hanger, evoking the image of someone left hanging from a cliff, thereby having an uncertain fate. The term "cliffhanger" is considered to have originated with the serialised version of Thomas Hardy's "A Pair of Blue Eyes", published in Tinsley's Magazine in the 1870s, in which the character Henry Knight is left hanging off of a cliff. It was inspired by a real life story from his wife Emma's childhood, when she had to rescue one of her school friends from a similar position.

  1. An ending or stopping point calculated to leave a story unresolved, in order to create suspense.

    “Back in the early 80s, the hit series Dallas kept the nation guessing with its season-ending cliffhanger "Who Shot J.R.?"”

  2. An outcome which is awaited with keen anticipation, especially one which is delayed for a period of time or which is not known until the last minute.

    “This presidential election is such a cliffhanger. Will it be the rising star Dmitry "Obamovich" Medvedev? Or the veteran Gennady "McCainovich" Zyuganov?”