denouement

de·noue·ment

noun \ˌdā-ˌnü-ˈmäⁿ, dā-ˈnü-ˌ\

Definition of DENOUEMENT

1

: the final outcome of the main dramatic complication in a literary work

2

: the outcome of a complex sequence of events

Variants of DENOUEMENT

de·noue·ment also dé·noue·ment \ˌdā-ˌnü-ˈmäⁿ, dā-ˈnü-ˌ\

Examples of DENOUEMENT

1. In the play's denouement, the two lovers kill themselves.

Origin of DENOUEMENT

French dénouement, literally, untying, from Middle French desnouement, from desnouer to untie, from Old French desnoer, from des- de- + noer to tie, from Latin nodare, from nodus knot — more at node

First Known Use: 1705

Other Literature Terms

apophasis, bathos, bildungsroman, bowdlerize, caesura, coda, doggerel, euphemism, poesy, prosody

Rhymes with DENOUEMENT

accouchement, aide-de-camp, au courant, battement, bien-pensant, ci-devant, contretemps, debridement, en passant, fainéant, insouciant, Maupassant, Orléans, Perpignan, rapprochement, revenant, se tenant, soi-disant, vol-au-vent