Culminato

Culminato is the masculine singular past participle of the Italian verb culminare. It is used in compound tenses with the auxiliary essere to indicate that a process or event has reached its peak or final stage, and it can also function as an adjective meaning “culminated” or “having reached a peak.” Common examples include: La stagione è culminata con un festival, and Il progetto è culminato nel 2020.

Etymology: Culminato derives from Latin culmen, culminis, meaning “summit” or “peak,” via the verb culminare “to reach a summit.” The Italian past participle is formed with the suffix -ato, as in culminare → culminato.

Usage notes: As a verbal participle, culminato appears in perfect tenses with avere rarely, but more commonly with essere when referring to a movement or change reaching a culmination. As an adjective, culminato describes something that has already reached its apex, though the related adjective culminante is often preferred to describe a lasting or ongoing culmination, as in una fase culminante or un periodo culminante.

Common phrases and related terms: The noun culmine (or culmine in other languages) and the phrase punto culminante are widely used to denote the peak or climax of a sequence. Related Italian terms include fase culminante (culminating phase) and momento culminante (climactic moment). Synonyms for peak or apex include apice, culmine, and cima.

Cross-linguistic notes: The Italian culminato corresponds to Spanish culminado and French culminé, reflecting a shared Latin root. The Italian present participle culminante is often used where English would say “culminating.” Culminazione refers to the act or result of reaching a culmination.