dénouement

UK/deˈnuːmɑ̃/US/ˌdeɪ.nuˈmɑnt/US/ˌdeɪ.nuˈmɑ̃/

noun

The conclusion or resolution of a plot; unravelling.

OriginFrench dénouement →
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Meanings

noundénouement (countable and uncountable, plural dénouements)

plural dénouements · alternative denouement · alternative archaic dénoûment

  1. countableuncountablehuman sciencesThe conclusion or resolution of a plot; unravelling.

    Emily was a great favourite with him; and he had always viewed the attachment, at whose dénouement between her and Lorraine, Lady Mandeville meant to preside, as a somewhat foolish romance.

    1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XIX, in Romance and Reality. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 271
    1 more example

    At last this affair is moving towards the explosive dénouement he has been craving — the revelation, the release of tension, that will shake the universe in one fierce convulsion, and then allow everything to fall back into its rightful place, restored to normality!

    2002, Michel Faber, The Crimson Petal and the White, Canongate Books (2010), page 830

Synonyms & antonyms

Also see
resolution

Origin

  1. Frenchdénouement“resolution”
  2. Englishdénouement

Unadapted borrowing from French dénouement (“resolution”, literally “unknotting”).

More words from French

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 結局 /结局, 收場 /收场
  • 結局 /结局 (jiéjú)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • 收場 /收场 (shōuchǎng)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
Dutch ontknoping
  • ontknopingthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Finnish loppuratkaisu
  • loppuratkaisuthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
German Auflösung, Ausgang
  • Auflösungthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • Ausgangthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • Endethe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • Entscheidungthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Hungarian végkifejlet, kifejlet
  • végkifejletthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • kifejletthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • kimenetelthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • kibontakozásthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Irish dénouement, scaoileadh
  • dénouementthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • scaoileadhthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Māori tatūnga
  • tatūngathe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Portuguese desfecho
  • desfechothe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Romanian deznodământ
  • deznodământthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Russian разга́дка, развя́зка
  • разга́дка (razgádka)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • развя́зка (razvjázka)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • исхо́д (isxód)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
  • разреше́ние (razrešénije)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
Spanish desenlace
  • desenlacethe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Swedish upplösning
  • upplösningthe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Ukrainian розв'язка
  • розв'язка (rozvʺjazka)the conclusion or resolution of a plot
Welsh diweddglo
  • diweddglothe conclusion or resolution of a plot
Cite this entry
APA

dénouement. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/d%C3%A9nouement

MLA

“dénouement.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/d%C3%A9nouement. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dénouement,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/d%C3%A9nouement.

Source: dénouement on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.