cliffhanger

Meanings

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

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.