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suspense

Syllabification: (sus·pense)
Pronunciation: /səˈspens/

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Definition of suspense

noun

  • 1a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen:come on, Fran, don’t keep me in suspense!
  • a quality in a work of fiction that arouses excited expectation or uncertainty about what may happen:a tale of mystery and suspense [as modifier]:a suspense novel
  • 2chiefly Law the temporary cessation or suspension of something.

Derivatives

suspenseful

Pronunciation: /-fəl/

adjective

Origin:

late Middle English: from Old French suspens 'abeyance', based on Latin suspensus 'suspended, hovering, doubtful', past participle of suspendere (see suspend)

Remember that suspense ends with -ense.

suspense in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of suspense in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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